HAPPY FOURTH!!! 

I am back from my mini holiday! What did I bring back with me? Pictures!!! I apologize, though, because they are mostly of my boys.

This past week was spent at my husband's Aunt Kate's rental on Smith Mountain Lake. There were a lot of us there--twelve adults and two children. (!!!) Kate rented a party boat for the week, and every day that we were there, my husband, my kids, and me spent hours on the boat and in the lake. My boys loved the boat, but wouldn't get in the water. (They're still little, so it wasn't a big deal.) I, on the other hand, took full advantage of the lake and spent so much time in the water, I think I've grown gills!

This picture was taken on the way down to SML. It's the Blue Ridge Pkwy, which, may I add, is the MOST beautiful route I have ever taken. If ever you travel down this way, take this parkway and you will LOVE it!

This is the view from Kate's balcony:

Here's my littlest ham. Most of the pictures I have are of him. He thinks he's so cute!

And here he is again...

Here's the boys and me.

Here's my oldest:

!!Confusion!!

Alright. I'd show you my progress on the lacy shrug, but you know what? My batteries are dead in my camera. It doesn't matter, anyway. I was going to be a smart ass. I was going to post the 6--count 'em, SIX--rows I have completed. But, Christina! I thought you were further along than that! AGHHHH!!!! I was, but you know what? The pattern for this adorable shrug is....AGHHH!!! I finished over half--maybe even 2/3 of the right side when suddenly the pattern became...confusing! Here is an excerpt: "Shape Lower Front At beg of RS row, [bind off 2 sts] once, then [ssk] 16 (19) times. At the same time, work even on other edge for back, maintaining established pat. Shape front neckline Continuing to dec at lower edge, when there are 26 (32) rows from row-counting marker, on RS work across to center marker and turn...." What really gets me is the shaping of the lower front. I just don't understand it! Am I supposed to do all of this in the same row, or is it to be spread out over the next twenty rows?! I'm so CONFUSED!!!!! I really thought I was a big shot. Well. This pattern has humbled me. I ripped out the same few rows and re-knit them many times before frogging the whole damn thing. Maybe, by starting over, this will make more sense by the time I get to that point. Maybe I made a mistake somewhere before I got to that point, that made the directions make less sense. If anyone has had this problem, PLEASE tell me what to do! I think the ssk's are supposed to be spread out over the next 19 RS rows. I just don't want to get a whole side done and find out I did it wrong. AND, quitting is not an option, as I have completely fallen in love with this shrug. :( I can't stop now.

Anyhow, other than that, my hubby and I have been charging steadily towards completion of our home remodeling. The goal is to put it on the market after we get back from visiting family in two weeks. We still have one MAJOR room to paint (the largest in the house) and one smaller room, plus two stairwells. Sounds like a lot, but really, it isn't. The pain in the ass will be moving everything away from the walls in the living room to paint...and keeping the boys from licking the latexed walls. We also have a lot of molding to put back up. We are very close to being done. Then we can GET OUT OF HERE!!! HAHAHAHA! (I hate this townhouse.)

Next week, for the Independence Day Holiday, my family is visiting my husband's dad and his step mom, Anne. Have I ever mentioned them? I love them. They are so much fun. I'm a little anxious, though, because there will be others there, and I'm not too good with crowds. I have a mild social phobia. I told my husband I would remain positive, not paranoid. I just always feel so out place. Anyhow, I'll take pictures and share them. It should be a good time. Hopefully. If I can quell my neurosis.

Well, that's all I have. I vented. I feel better. I forgot one thing, though. I sat on my bamboo needles...do I have to go on? One of them is a little...cracked. I'm really upset, because they are brand new. Maybe I can reinforce it with a little wood glue? It isn't that bad. (Okay, now I'm done ranting.)

Later!

Say hello to my little friend...

Do you remember when Mr. Potatohead was fun? My 3 yr old has gone Potatohead Crazy. Not only that, but he wants me to play with him. (This, apparently, is not a game to be played by one person.) I love Mr. Potatohead, but you know what? There are only so many seconds before he becomes boring. The most excited thing about the Potatohead Gang (there's three--man, woman and child) is whether or not they will have smiling teeth, or poking out tongues. My son loves it, though. :)

So, I ran out yesterday and bought some yarn for that project I talked about yesterday. I chose Peru DK Luxury, which is a Merino, Alpaca and silk blend. Nice! Okay, I know this is going to make a child's shrug, which will undoubtedly get dirty again, and again, but I am committed to this project. I'll hand wash the darn thing!

While I was out, I picked up a new book, "Knits from the Heart." Great book! I thumbed through it in the store and could definitely see myself completing many of the projects. There are the cutest, tiniest socks. I think they could be a good side project.

Anyhow, here is a picture of the Lace Shrug I'm making for my non-existent daughter:


I'm really enjoying this pattern, so far.

The Compulsive homemaker

It's not much, but it's something!

I've been having such a hard time finding something to knit, so I thought I'd cool my heels on a simple dish cloth. I used 100% cotton.

I have found my next project.

I found this project in the current issue of "Creative Knitting Magazine." (The pattern isn't on their website, so you'd have to buy the magazine to make this.) You probably can't see it in this picture, but there are cables and eyelets running up the arms and on the feet of this ensemble. I bought the magazine just for this pattern--although, there are other nice patterns other than this. When I complete it, I'll post a picture. I, unfortunately, do not have a girl to model it. As a matter of fact, I'm making it in hopes of having a girl some day soon! Boys are great, but not much fun to knit for. Anyhow, that's my next project.

I bought two books at Borders the other day. Both deal with the subject of being a happy, competent housewife. One is about being a family manager, the other is about taking pride in having stay-at-home status. Interesting, huh? Well, it is to me. I want to learn the secret of a clean, smooth-running home. I want well-behaved clean kids, and dinner in the oven at the same time everyday. It's funny, before I had my first son, being a mom was all I could think about. I tried for two years before conceiving him, and planned right away that I would be a SAHM (Stay-At-Home-Mom, for those of you who don't know the acronym.) Then I got my wish and was immediately over- and underwhelmed at the same time. (Yes, it can happen.) When my second son came, I started to resent having kids so young. For some reason I suddenly rejected the idea of being at home with my kids. I felt like I wasn't accomplishing anything. First, I took a part time job as a check out girl. Then, I got a job at BB&B, which is where I was until recently. I was part time and a supervisor, but I wasn't happy when all the youngsters started getting ready for college. I wanted an education! So, I enrolled in classes. I was still unhappy, though. I wanted to have more control at work, even if that meant putting the kids in daycare! Of course, the decision wasn't as easy as that. I agonized over it for months. Anyhow, I got that promotion and, wouldn't you know it, I wasn't happy. So. I am back to square one. I think this is where I belong. I let my ego get the best of me in each one of those instances. (My ego is huge and hungry.) I've learned, though, that I can do good at whatever I work at, even if that's raising my kids. I wanted them. I should take care of them. Sounds really old fashioned, huh?

Some backstory: My mom spent my entire childhood and teenagerdom at home. She was there. Everyday. The house was sanitized on a daily basis. (And I'm not kidding. You could literally lick the floors if the moment moved you.) Clothes were always clean and under control. Dinner was always made, and every morning my mom would make me and my sibs sack lunches of PB & J sandwiches. Of course, I took all of this for granted. I hated that I couldn't buy my lunch--laughable, I know, considering the quality, or lack thereof, of school lunches. I hated that my mom would pull out the broom if she felt the slightest speck of dirt on the floor. Most of all, I despised doing dishes right after eating. BUT...

Now I want to be that compulsive homemaker. I'm old-fashioned because my mom was old-fashioned. I commend and respect her for how in control she was during my younger years. So, I bought the books for pointers. Why not ask her myself? She never took shortcuts. Cleaning was her life. Unfortunately, as much as I like a clean house, I like my free time, too. I need a plan of attack.

Anyhow, why mention this all? What's the point? I guess I just wanted to say, bring the home arts back!! I miss the time when being a mother meant something. I want to earn my Mother's Day cards!! That's all I wanted to say. [Steps off soap box.]

Guess What?

I've been knitting!! Yay! Do you remember this:















This was the beginnings of a rabbit I was making for my niece. Special, huh? Anyhow, I got the pattern from one of the best knitting books ever, "Last Minute Knitted Gifts."








To the left, you will see a bunch of parts. With some artful rearranging, we see that these parts finally equal a whole...a whole bunny rabbit.



I've been very busy, though, and decided it wasn't enough just to have all the bunny parts finished. I wanted to finally finish this rabbit. So, while I was watching "The Skeleton Key" on HBO last night, I stitched his little parts together and gave him a face. (I think he's handsome.) My only complaint about the pattern, though, is that the ears and the arms were a little difficult to sew to the body. The instructions just said to sew like it is in the picture. I ended up having messy arm and ear joints. I think the arms should have been added during knitting, just as if they were fingers on a glove. The ears, I decided, are too wide at the base, which is what makes them difficult to sew to the head. I would have made them a little more narrow.

But, I digress--presenting...the Bunny!

I wrapped a ribbon around his neck because I think he looks naked. Maybe I'll knit him a little jacket...or maybe not. So? Cute?

Knitting talk aside, I have some information to report. First of all, I quit my job. That's why I had time to finish the bunny. I freaked out last weekend and just had to get out of there. I didn't want to quit that way. There is no honor in walking off the job, but if I would've stayed, I would've hurt business. That's all behind me, though. We (my husband and I) are getting this house ready to put on the market, then good bye Maryland! I can't wait to move. I just want to simplify. I just have the uncontrollable urge to throw everything away and start over. I guess that's kinda what I did with my job. I feel happy for the first time in a long time. I have something to look forward to!

So, as I said, we are fixing up the house. We've gotten pretty far, which means we will be able to put the house on the market soon. We just have a lot of painting to do. That, and I have become a mad woman, throwing everything away. If it serves no immediate purpose, it is either getting donated, or getting canned. Simplify. That's my new word. You can not imagine the amount of junk we've accumulated in just a five short years. Terrible. I am so ashamed of myself! :-p

As for the boys, they are doing great. I had to take them out of daycare when I quit, which made me feel bad. They've grown attached to Kish (their provider), and she has fallen in love with them. I felt as if I were breaking up with her when I told her I had to take them out of daycare. I felt so bad! I don't know. Maybe I'm assuming she loves them as much as I do.

Well, that's all I have for now. It's going to be a great day.

I started to knit...

...but then I got frustrated. The yarn I chose didn't work well with my smallest needles, making my stitches very loose. :-
I do have some news. I should be moving at the end of the summer. Why does this matter? I'll tell you why. Leaving this state will require me to leave my job. (Yes, the one that I wanted the promotion so badly.) If I leave my job, I plan on staying home for a while with my boys. I feel like I never see them anymore. And I have no time for me. So, it'll be a good thing...unless I change my mind AGAIN. I'm very good at that. I hate change. That is why I'm not adapting so well to my new responsibilities at work. Unfortunately, this means I won't be adapting so well to not working. AGH! It is very difficult to make me happy. (So my husband says.)

Anyhow, that will come later. I'm looking forward to it--for now. We'll see.

Since I have no knitting pictures, here's one of my youngest boy. This was taken a few months ago when my sister came to visit and we went to the National Zoo.

And here is a picture of my niece, Lucy:

And, my sister, Mandy:

One more--my baby, Aaron, and me:

Yeah, there were animals there. Their pictures just didn't make it to this post! (Uploading is taking waaayyy too long.) BTW, that's an old picture of me. My hair is much shorter.

Well, more posts later. I have to work from 1 o'clock this afternoon until 11:30 tonight, so I should probably try to get at least something done before I leave!

One more week....

...then no more school!!! The bad news is, this last week will be filled with studying and stressing. Oh well. It's almost over.

Anyhow, here is a pic--of me. I cut my hair off. It's kind of hard to see it in this picture.

It's a nice picture, anyway.

I've started to knit some socks. I'll post a picture when I progress. Right now it's just a few rows and looks like nothing.

Well, that's all for today. Yes, it's a short post, but I have to get ready for my last yoga class. ;-)

Good morning

Still no pics to post, BUT I will be done with school SOON! That means, my days off from work will be mine again. (Hooray!) I finished my term paper for Literature, and while it is not up to my standards, it'll have to do. (It's not like I have a ton of time to redo it.) Besides, there's one load of my mind! Phew!

I have done some knitting. It's not much, but my fingers were just aching for some needles and yarn! I'm still working on that damn bunny I started months ago. It's not that it's hard or a long project. I just haven't had any time to work on it. I can NOT wait until I have a little more free time because I have been dying to knit some lacy socks. We'll see. I'm just starting to feel so much relief and I thought I'd SHOUT ABOUT IT! :-) That's about all for now, though. I have to get ready for a loooonnnngggg day at work. BUT I will return...

I'm still here...

I have been so busy that my free time has been filled with all the stuff I still have to do. I'm tired, I'm frustrated, and I asked for it!

If I didn't mention, I got the promotion, and the head aches that go with it. I was actually doing great for a bit there, then reality set in. We have been extremely busy the last few days and I've been so frustrated that my eyes keep tearing up at work. Luckily I haven't full-on cried yet, although I was REALLY close to it yesterday. My supervisor was with me, and I think my tears motivated her to work harder that night. I don't cry. Ever. I get angry and I yell when I'm upset, but these last few days I've just felt defeated. Ten hour days followed by making dinner and doing laundry. I know I'll adjust. I just haven't found my balance yet. (Oh, did I mention I'm still taking three classes? The semester ends next month.)

I've been really itching to knit lately. I haven't picked up the needles in a while, and I think tonight might be the night. I've just been thinking about it since Saturday. Hopefully I can post a FO soon.

The Saturday Post

I don't post on Saturdays. I'm usually too busy, but, the kids decided to wake up early, so here I am! I have some minutes before I have to start getting ready for yoga. Ideally, I should be using this time to get my last assignment for the week done, but I am a little to tired for real thinking right now. I haven't slept well since Tuesday night. Yeah, that was the night before my interview. I know I said I'd post after it, but I was too pooped on Wednesday to post, then blogger was down all Thursday. Friday I heard back about the interview, but then something else got me worrying. I've been up every night wondering "how am I gonna make this work?"

Well, The interview went horribly, I thought. I met each and everyone of the guys questions will an awkward and unintellegent answer. And I was brutally honest. I'm surprised I didn't confess to be the one who "took the cookies from the cookie jar." I told him about my battle with my abrasive nature. I told him I was a "perfectionist." (I could've said "I take pride in my work," but no. I let him know I was anal retentive, without using those words.) I even told the guy I think highly of myself. I don't even remember how I worked that one into the conversation! I left thinking, "this guy probably thinks I'm an egomaniac." When I came in the next day, though, my manager started teasing me and telling me I blew it. Luckily, Sue, my other manager, called and told me the HR guys impression of me. Get this: he liked me. He was impressed by my honesty. He already had heard of me--the cashier like to talk of my legendary meaness--and was surprised I fessed up to my faults without hesitation. Dishonesty had never even crossed my mind, though. (I'm a bad liar, anyway.)

So, he called me yesterday with a job offer. He told me how much I would make a year, and I'll just say this: I was happy. When he had asked me how much I wanted during the interview, I made a huge mistake. I said the very minimum I would work for. How stupid is that? My husband yelled at me for that one. But, I did have an exact number (not the one I said to HR guy) that I wanted. He must be able to read minds, because that is what I got. It's actually the average for a department manager living in Maryland, which is just fine. I was afraid I wasn't going to get the figure I wanted because of my lack of managerial experience. Anyhow, it was all working out great until...

...The daycare I was going to put my boys in got filled up. (!!!!!) Noooooooo! So, I made a frantic call to all the daycares in the area, and the story was the same. All booked up. So, naturally, I started balling my eyes out. I called my husband, blubbering and sobbing, and told him what happened. He said,"we'll figure something out." I guess he called Kindercare and told them our situation. They said they'd get back to us because they have to figure out which room to put Sean in. (He has special needs.) So they are supposed to call back monday. I can't back down from this job. I already work at this place. If I refuse the promotion, or if I ask them to postpone it anymore than I already have, they are going to be very unhappy. I might have to beg my mom to come up and spend a few weeks watching my kids while I wait for some openings.

Well, enough of my sob story. Here's a headless bunny:

Hey, that kind of makes me smile. :-\ Well, almost.

I need to wrap this up. I have yoga this morning, which I do NOT feel like going to. Not only do I have a cold, but I'm bloated. Yuck. And I'm soo tired. My mind was running a mile a minute last night, and I took some unisom to help me fall asleep. BUT...Sean is sick and I woke up to the sound of him coughing his brains out. When he coughs too much, he sometimes vomits. (I know. Gross.) So I was up all night listening to him cough and worrying that he is laying in his own vomit. I kept getting up periodically to check on him. What an awful night.

SOOOO, I got go. I'll post more later. Maybe even a picture of a finished bunny. (As if I have time to knit!)

Here is my button. If anyone wants it, you can find it to the right of your screen! Please save it and dispay it. I want more friends.

Yay! I have a WIP to Share!

And here it is!

Can you guess what it'll be? Here's a clue: those dangly things on the bottom are legs, and the those pieces that look like thumbs are arms. Give up? It's a bunny! It is from my favorite knitting book, Last Minute Knitted Gifts, which, if you remember, is the one that I borrowed from the library and fell in love with. I finally bought a copy of my own. Now I can love it forever. (Mwah ha ha) Here's a close up:

The thick yarn is Wool-ease. The thin feathery looking one is a cheap-o target yarn that I bought for a dollar a ball. It's cheap, but super soft. I'm making the bunny for my niece. She's going to be visiting me (with my baby sis) in two weeks! I'm soooooo excited!!!

Other stuff....

Guess what? I have a 1950 Singer Sewing machine. Well, let me back up, first.

Last year, my mom's aunt (my great aunt) died. She collected everything. My mom and dad recently made a trip up to Long Island (where my aunt lived) because the will is finally started to get settled. (Yes, a year after she passed.) So my mom brought a bunch of antiques to my house for safe keeping. I live half way between my great aunt's house (in Long Island) and my parents (Mississippi.) Sooo, I have all this cool stuff in my house, a lot of which my mom's just going to give me. She figures, she'd rather give it to me now, rather leave it in a will. Scary to talk like that, huh? She's young and hardy, though, so I don't think she's going anywhere for a long time.

Well, I'll get right to it...this is my sewing machine!!!!

It's still super filthy, despite the fact that I have already wiped it down once. Ain't it purdy, though? The best thing--it still runs. I just needs some replacement parts and a good, deep cleaning!

My mom also found knitting and crocheting stuff in the house. She didn't bring me back the yarn, but she brought me a tin filled with crochet hooks and a completed doily. Unfortunately, the doily is ancient and falling apart. It was probably made by my great grandmother's. (I told you, my aunt saved everything!) I don't have a picture yet, but I'll post one later.

I also got an old camera out of the deal. It's an Ansco and it uses 620 roll film. It's the type of camera that has the view finder on the top. I'll take a picture of that, too. I plan on ordering film for it. :) I know I can find the film, but will I be able to find someone to develop it for me?

I'm so excited about this stuff, though. I love history and antiques! I plan on passing this stuff down to my kids.

Oh, oh! And I'm not bragging, but I am supposed to get an upright piano from her estate. I used to love that piano. Sometimes she'd let me play it. My parents have no use for it, so they are giving it to me. Again, I will love it forever.

That's all I have for now. Tomorrow I have my interview for the manager position. I'll probably be posting afterward on how well, or how bad, it went. Wish me luck!!

Aaron's showing me how he throws snowballs. 

Then he tried to dump snow on my mom, who is the one taking the picture. 

The next day my dad decided to shovel my drive-way for me. 

Action shot of my dad chucking snowballs at John and Aaron. 

Sean...I couldn't get him to stand still for nothing! He did enjoy the snow, though.

Me pulling the kids. There wasn't much snow at this point, so pulling the sled was pretty difficult. The next day there ended up being at least a half a foot of snow.

Dodging snowballs and the camera.