Thursday, January 27, 2011

Play Pretend...

One of Max's favorite things to do lately is play pretend. Mostly he's a cow, in a cage, which is really Penny's crib. Sometimes he plays hocus pocus and uses a towel to magically turn things into other things. He mostly turns Penny into a pumpkin. Sometimes he also pretends he's a dog and likes to lick people, and sometimes our bed is a stage and we have to announce him and then turn on the lights and he'll play you a song on his guitar.

But today I realized most days I still feel like I'm pretending to play house, kinda like I really can't be this old and have two (2!) kids that I am responsible for. And instead I'm back in college and still unsure of what I am and who I'm supposed to be. Like I might wake up and this has all been a very freakishly vivid dream.

Tonight I had coffee with a new and awesome friend. And I realized I didn't know how long we've lived here. It's been long enough that I stopped counting. I'm not dreaming and I'm not going to wake up and find myself living back in Swiss Tower in that little bubble of wonderfullness that was Dallas Seminary. Or back in Morrill Tower (I've lived in a lot of towers) with the Humanities Scholars- again a bubble of wonderfullness- This is my life and it's all still about figuring out who I am and trying to come up with what I'm doing and mostly right now it has to do with laundry and asking a certain person if they have to go potty four thousand times a day. It's a reality that I know won't last forever, but sometimes I still feel like I'm playing pretend.

Like tonight when  I undercooked the bread, and burnt the potatoes and the french toast tasted awful even though Max and Adam ate it anyway. I felt like I was playing pretend and was way out of my league. Even though it's a dinner I've made at least a dozen times. Some days we float around the house and Max helps pick up and I get something decently cleaned and we are all smiling at the end of the day. And others are like tonight where I put the baby to sleep and happily say goodbye and leave the house as quickly as possible to escape the reality of it all.

I mostly my life- real or pretend as it may be. My favorite part is when Max plays a song for me.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

It's all coming up yarn

I like yarn better than roses anyway.

Today I began a little knitting group. Well knitting, crocheting, teaching, learning, children running around screaming, babies eating needles and gnawing on yarn, group. I hope it sticks. It's that good kind of chaos that leaves me feeling like the rest of the day is calm cool and collected. And it wears out the kiddos.

Today Soulemama blogged about what's in her knitting basket and I thought- Hmmm I don't have a knitting basket, I have a knitting space between our trunk and the love seat and then there's the overflow.... We won't talk about that....

But then I realized there's yarn all over the house. And I really like it that way. So I dug up some places there are yarn and this was after I had already picked up a little.

A yarn covered diaper next to a yarny WIP 

Yarn came in the mail today from Mamaw to finish off a baby gift
Part of my stash that was revealed to the knitting ladies today
Ahem- the diaper bag with a purchase from yesterday....
Penny's Halloween lady bug ears that are still played with.
And finally my knitting space. Complete with my knitpicks harmony needles I got for Christmas (LOVE!) and most of my works in progress.... Here they are in detail.
 A baby blanket in a made up classic ripple. It is very American looking, but also very lovely I think.

A mystery test pattern knit. I can't wait to blog about this one and also about the person who wrote the pattern, probably one of the coolest people I internet know. (You know, instead of real life know...)

A waiting scarf for Grammy that was promised back on New Years and still not started (Sorry Grammy!)

Penny's Christmas Blocks that still aren't finished either... I got distracted by other beautiful things.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Busy Beavers

We've been busy beavers lately (um, when are we not!) and we've had something to do each day. But I gotta be honest. I am so very looking forward to the day when we can just play outside. I'm not a snow player and it seems that Max has a tendency that way too. It takes me longer to get him dressed to play outside than he'll actually stay out. So really, it's not worth it. It's cold. That makes me grumpy. It also explodes cans of soda on our back porch leaving a huge disaster of soda on the walls ceiling and floor. That makes me extra grumpy.

I've been knitting away, but nothing I can share. A baby blanket is being crocheted and I'm testing a pattern that's hoping to be published for an internet friend.

I"ve bought more yarn than I've used up in the past month and have a taken a hiatus on buying yarn... That's really easy to say since I bought yarn today.... So it's a new hiatus and one I probably won't kill myself to keep.

I've also been organizing everything I can get my hands on- Re-purposing as much as possible and getting rid of everything I'm not using. The old hutch is now relabeled with the hopes of being functional again- Binders are being reorganized - my household notebook, recipe notebook, crochet/knitting pattern notebook- they are all getting new looks.

I've also been baking- mostly making bread using Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day
It's leading to me really needing to get back into a gym routine. I will work out just so I can eat more bread. That's motivation, my friends.

Other than that I have really cute kids, some awesome friends who are always up for a bit of fun, and a to do list a mile and a half long. Life's pretty awesome.


Saturday, January 15, 2011

13!

I've been inspired by a blog I read to take at least one photo a month of the kids. I've decided to do the 13th of every month and blog about it. I can't promise the blog will come on the 13th... um it's the 15th right? and I can't promise I'll remember on the 13th to even take the picture (I took these on the 14th, oops) But it's an attempt I'm going to make. I chose the 13th because both kids were born on the 13th. Unlucky for some, it's the best day for me! I'll also include a list of 13 things about the kids or our family life. I couldn't choose one picture so here's 7...

 Eyeballing his food
 Both smiling (but a little blurry)
 sharing his supper
 Out take
 two peas in a pod
 they love each other, they really do
 Sibling Love

1. Penny is 7 months old and Max is 32 months old
2. Penny loves to sit up and actively play now.
3. That also means she gets bored. Very bored. Very easily.
4. Max's favorite thing (according to him) is play toys. 
5. Penny is eating everything she can get her hands on... seriously. Anything. Her favorite thing to eat is paper.
6. Max's favorite thing to eat (according to him) is noodles.
7. Penny also gets mad now when you leave the room... Ugh.
8. Max is doing so well potty training- I guess I was under the delusion that it was a cut and dry process for every kid. That is so not true.
9. Our favorite thing to do when we are having a bad day, it have a dance party in the living room.
10. Yesterday Max saw me knitting and asked me for a new hat. He just got a new hat at Christmas. But he even went upstairs and picked out the yarn... How can I say no?
11. Penny is now a blankie girl and requires no less than two blankies at bedtime to snuggle and rub her face on to fall asleep. One flannel and one fluffy. She holds them on either side of her face all night.
12. Today Adam is on a retreat all day and so we are having a fun day. Mama's not cooking and we are watching movies and meeting friends for lunch and all taking really long naps this afternoon (hopeful!)
13. We have some bad days, but the good days are so awesome I can't even remember why the bad days are bad!

Giveaway Winner!

I've decided to go ahead and choose two winners for the giveaway! I entered all 12 names of the commenters here on the blog and on Facebook into the List Randomizer on Random.org and out came two lovely ladies!
First is Amy, an old college roomie in OH
And second was Amber, a wonderful friend from seminary in KS
I was going to let let the winner choose and then send the other item to the second, but I decided to choose for you ladies based on how I know your personailities (I hope you aren't offended by that!)
So Amy- Here's your's:
Pattern: Waffel Hat (ravelry.com link)

And Amber- Here's your's:
Pattern: My own design!

Thanks for playing friends :)

Saturday, January 8, 2011

An Update- 31 things before 30 and a giveaway

I haven't checked in yet on the list of 30 things before 30 so I thought I would share on those today. It's been almost 6 months since I turned 28 and I'm surprised at how often I think of this list. I thought I would make it and forget it, but I really do think of it at least once a week. Mostly in the shower, when I have 2.5 seconds of peace and the water is loud enough that it almost seems quiet.

So here's the list with some commentary if you are following along-
1. Run at least a half marathon if not a full one
Well I'm not there yet. In fact as most people I didn't hardly do anything over the holiday season-
2. Clean out my closet to things that I only actually wear (not wish I could wear or might wear someday)
Actually DONE! It was liberating and I'm still pulling a few pieces out here and there. I'm amazed at what I had t had that I didn't wear ever, at all, and didn't even like.
3. See the pacific ocean
4. Decide whether or not (and have if we are) any more children
We're done for now and it's up for renegotiation in 2015 so that takes care of the before 30 part.
5. Weekend in Chicago (this was on my list last night as I was thinking of things, and that's what my gift from Adam is for my birthday! He must have read my mind)
We had a great time! And it was awesome- I've already been again for a day with friends and I'm planning another day trip in February to visit some friends. I'm such a city girl.
6. Learn to quilt
7. Complete another full sized afghan (either knit or crochet)
8. Decide on a career
9. Join a CSA for a summer
10. Get Adam to eat the veggies from the CSA
11. Take Max and Penny to a real live farm to see animals and/or harvest
We went to go see the harvest and Max and Adam rode the combine
12. Visit the PNW
13. Find a little black dress I actually like
14. Finish reading the whole Bible (I've started this one so many times, but always go back to my favorites instead of reading it all)
15. knit myself a sweater
This is one of my knitting goals for this year. I just have to decide on a pattern
16. Feel comfortable in my own skin, no matter what it looks like, or who I'm with
17. Clean out everything we collect and make it into everything we use/need/love
I started with my closet and I'm working through the house. I'm ending with the garage. Which will then lead to #30
18. Catch up on Max and Penny's scrapbooks
I've actually done a page or two of Max's and printed a billion pictures
19. Have a "handmade Christmas" where everything I give has been handmade by myself or someone I know
I did pretty well this year, but I'd like to do better next year. If not I'm pretty satisfied with how well I did this year.
20. Vacation without the kids (I think the overnight in Chicago might count for this one too...)
I'm totally counting it.
21. Go to Disneyland
22. Learn to use our camera in manual mode a little better
I have but I'm still not great. I'd like to be better.
23. Have professional (really professional) family pictures taken
We tried. The kids were awful that morning. It's like they KNEW I wanted a nice picture. We'll have to try again.
24. Visit Dallas again
25. Spend some time alone on a beach and just read a book or magazine or knit
26. See MOPS (or any other ministry I might be involved in) flourish
MOPS has been awesome! I love the friends I've made and am continuing to make- it's thriving and living and moving- just awesome
27. Play my cello again
28. Read all the books I've bought and never read
I've at least resisted the urge to buy more books
29. Use trifle dish that I bought years ago but have only used to hold ice
I used it for fruit salad- I was also reminded that I totally have used it already- December 2008- 
30. Have a garage sale
31. So I've been wanting to do something for a while I've never had the courage to do. It's something kinda silly, and I was thinking I was too old to, but I realized I'm not and I've been hemming and hawing about it for a few weeks now. So mystery item number 31 is going on the list and will be revealed when I do it.

I know I have a few readers so I'm looking for some feed back- What's something you've always wanted to do (something big or something small) but just have never had the courage to do? Answer in the comments and I'll totally pick a random commenter to receive something Cara-made-

Thursday, January 6, 2011

I'm no good at making resolutions. It's like I'm setting myself up for failure when I don't complete them or stick with them. But I do like to make lists and my "beginning of the year" list included a LOT of things. One thing was to blog more and continue to stay away from a whole lot of Facebook. One week in I've succeeded. Here's a blog-

I wanted to talk a bit about the kids because approximately a million times a day I try to commit to memory something hilarious that Max has said or a wonderful noise or face that Penny makes.
I'm not very good at that.

Here are some recent things I've said that I never would have imagined saying:
Please don't use your spoon as a tail-
No you may not have poop candy out of the bucket until you poop in the potty.
Mommy's glad it's a school day too, son, but your teachers aren't there yet.
Max was helping Penny in the bath...
Max is just hilarious! Today while getting our hair cut (and I got my first color to color gray- not just for the fun of coloring! EEP!) He turned around while getting his hair cut and laughed and pointed and told me I looked funny... (I had the dye in my hair) Thanks kid.

One of his favorite things is to have a dance party. We turn up the music station on the tv or the radio and dance our little hearts out. It often turns bad days right around and Penny thinks it's the funniest things she's ever seen (it probably is pretty funny)

He adores social activities- every morning without fail he'll check with me and see if it's a school day, or MOPS day, or if someone is coming over to play.

He also remembers everything. We have to be careful about what we tell him because he WILL remember. And will tell other people. :) Today he recounted accurately something someone told me in front of him weeks ago that hasn't been mentioned since.

Penny is growing way too fast- she's officially sitting up on her own (not for ever, but she can for a while) and she's now taking tastes of anything she can get her hands on (with Max I remember being very diligent and cautious about foods.... Penny is eating doughnuts but hasn't even had anything green yet.... oops). She has a very friendly personality and loves to watch people. She's not overly loud or expressive, but will smile at anyone who pays attention to her. She's also more cuddly than Max ever was.
 In Mama's Christmas dress circa 1982
 Hey!
Sweet girl- Just today
It's so fun to already see the two kids build a relationship together. They already love each other. Max will climb into Penny's crib to cuddle with her (with us around, not just any time) and Penny thinks Max is the best entertainment ever. It really makes my heart full.

Adam is doing well and fighting a cold we've all been passing around. I realize I don't talk about him at all on here. He's awesome and loves his kids and does awesome work with our church and blah blah blah, He's awesome. We just started watching the seasons of Madmen and I'm super hooked already and so is he.

I've been tossing around the idea of opening an Etsy shop to sell the things I make and think that I should have something to offer by March if things continue as they are. I'm pretty excited about it and have been getting a number of requests lately for things, so I'm getting an idea of what would be feasible for me to sell and what would be practical for me to make.
my new hair color
Visiting with Grammy and Pop Pop