This Moment

Joining SouleMama and her followers in this moment - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. 

The Short List

I was cleaning up the bookshelf in the kids' room the other day and I thought I would share with you our short list of most beloved board books.  That middle stack of books has withstood a lot of love and reading in heavy repetition in the time we've had them. Poor "Bear Snores On" is in need of some serious binding repair, but I never tire of it.

The Dr. Seuss books on the left would make the long list of favourites - with a particular mention of "Hand Hand Fingers Thumb" (which, incidentally is NOT by Dr. Seuss) and Mr. Brown can Moo!

What are your most beloved books to read to your wee ones?

This Moment

Joining SouleMama and her followers in this moment - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. 

Febrrrrruary

So many things already in this shortest and hardest month.  Small triumphs, epic fails, sickness, a new resident,  sleep-deprived nights, big birthdays, overdue talks with faraway friends, and frigid temperatures.

This has been a tough month so far. It has been cold and the kids and I have been sick - a lot.  I've been missing my family and my oldest friends (not old in years, of course).  My friend, Jan, told me February is the hardest month for parenting and given my experience and that she has 7 kids, I believe her.

But despite the challenges, I am glad to see the small steps forward in the sea of used kleenex, the continuous coughing and whining, and empty bottles of infant and adult tylenol. I am proud of my husband for all of the slack he's picked up and never complained about despite it's toll.  I'm thankful for the healing of tiny bodies.  I am grateful for volunteers who remember what it was like to have small kids in the Winter months.  I was happy to celebrate my 30th birthday this month.  I felt I parented well through one of the worst days I've had - and that was no small victory :).  I got back to some homeschooling with Isaiah.  I found out Lucy likes raw red peppers. I got a great new haircut at a real salon. I received some beautiful birthday presents (like this one from Jasmine) I have gift certificates for yarn and books and coffee.  Really, the rest of this month may not be too bad.

Drycleaners and Pygmy Puffs

It was the first week in January and Keith's birthday so I went to get my hair cut upon his request.  I have a small face, so when my bangs get too long they kind of - take over.  Keith happens to like my face so I thought it would be a nice gift if he could see it again.  The hairdresser only had time to cut my bangs since I didn't have an appointment so I was childless and had 20 extra minutes of spare time!

I was feeling leisurely when I left the salon and happened to be looking in the windows of the other shops in the strip mall when I saw it - yarn.  Yarn and knit up socks in the window of a drycleaner.  I believe I threw open the door and said - okay, yelled - "You sell yarn here!"   If you aren't a knitter or crocheter you probably don't understand what it is like to find a new yarn source a mere 5 minute walk from your house.  So, after my outburst, the very sweet lady behind the counter started to tell me about her online yarn store and her mother who knit up the socks.  The yarn was mostly bamboo sock weight yarn and some chunky wool but the prices were great.  They also had some eyelash yarn for dirt cheap and I had only just stumbled upon Nancy Frye's pattern for Pygmy Puffs from Harry Potter VI.  What was a girl to do?  So I spent $7.50 for two balls of bamboo and one ball of purple/blue eyelash yarn.  

Here is my Puff :)

I think I'm going to knit the stay-on baby booties with bamboo, but we'll see.  I have managed to stay on my yarn-fast wagon since my slip on the 6th - but we are entering February, which although short, seems to drag out the Winter here in Ottawa...and I think my Christmas dress needs to be drycleaned :)

This Moment

Joining SouleMama and her followers in this moment - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. 

Wool Socks

Wool socks.  The epitome of warmth and comfort on Wintery days.  This is what I thought when I set out knitting these guys for my brother-in-law, Colin.  He is an outdoorsy guy who hunts and fishes and has loved the fingerless gloves I've made for him in the past. So, I started knitting.  These are the third pair of socks I've made in my four and a half years as a knitter.  The first pair took about 6 months.  Well, the first sock took about 3 months and the second sock took three months to even make it onto the needles but knit up in a couple of weeks.  The second pair I blitzed and finished in a little over a week. Naturally, I was optimistic when I cast on the first of this pair back before Thanksgiving - Canadian Thanksgiving - at the beginning of October.  This is as far as they've made it - or rather, IT has made it.

The combination of a knit 3, purl 1 pattern and the very fine navy blue yarn means that I need good lighting to work on these and since I have a 3.5 year old and a 23month-old - I knit mostly watching TV with Keith in the evenings with very poor lighting.

Needless to say, I took a break from knitting on these for a few weeks after the holidays, once I was reconciled to the fact that Colin wouldn't be getting these socks before Spring.  During my hiatus I was at our monthly knitting guild meeting with my friend Jasmine. I was telling her about "those stupid socks" when the lady across the table told me she had knit every pair of socks her husband had for the last 50 years.  In a knit 3, purl 1 pattern.  In black yarn.  She told me she hated knitting every pair, but he loved them so she kept doing it for 50 years.  Isn't that just it?  Us crazy knitters will knit something we hate working on for someone we love just because we know they will love it.  We are a mental, but generous bunch.

p.s. If you haven't looked at this video on Franklin Habit's blog: The Panopticon, I think you should.  Especially if you are a non-knitter with a knitting friend.  This may explain a lot.