Funny Magic

On Motherhood

So I was reading one of Melissa's posts over at Tiny Happy and felt inspired to play along by responding to the prompt: What are five things you like (or dislike) about being a mother? This is part of an 'Around the World in 80 Clicks' idea started at Her Bad Mother, here, where mothers write their answers, then tag five other women from their own country, or overseas.

Here's what I like, in no particular order:

1. I like being there for two little people to count on no matter what. It fills me with a sense of purpose in this world.

2. I like taking vacations and going on adventures with my kids. It may not be as relaxing, but it sure is a heckuva lotta fun. A kid's first airplane ride? First overnight in a tent in the woods? First time fishing on a lake in Minnesota? Priceless for sure.

3. I like that being a mom has led me to become more compassionate and patient than I ever thought I could be; I like to think that I'm less of a wound-up and worried sort (read: less self-absorbed, perhaps? All things knitterly and all crafty endeavors excluded from this declaration of course!).

4. I like that what once might have been "old" to us is new again when experienced with a child. Dandelions leaving yellow stains on the nose, finding the moon in the sky during daylight hours, the silliness of birds arguing over their lunch of seeds at the birdfeeder outside our window...I could go on.

5. There's really nothing that I dislike about being a mother, and I'm not just saying that with faeries and butterflies flying about my head and a double rainbow gracing the background. Rather, it's with the knowledge that if there's one thing I dislike about being a mom, it has everything to do with how I perceive and judge myself as a mother. In other words, it's a challenge to keep those overly-critical voices at bay, although I can also appreciate this so-called "personal maternal barometer" that keeps me inspired and, hopefully, my kids as well. (Here's hoping I'm making a lick of sense, here).  

Anyhoo, Mother's Day is fast approaching, and right now I just wish I could give all of you ladies out there who mother, love, spend time with, care about, teach, and laugh with kids a big 'ol hug and pat on the back while simultaneously shoving a glass of wine (or a mocktail, if you prefer) in your hand, whether you're a mother or an aunt or a grandparent or a good friend. (Que the butterflies and rainbows, please!) We all know that bringing up kids in this world isn't easy by any means, but the rewards and benefits are huge - I have to believe that.

Feel free to play along if you wanna, and let me know if you do!

Tag :: I'm It

Yesterday I was tagged by my friend, the lovely Holli, of Feeding the Big Guy. Here's the rules:

1. Take a picture of yourself right now. No primping or preparing. Just snap a picture.

2. Load the picture onto your blog.

3. Tag three people to play.

That's it. Here's me:

All's I gotta say is that my suspicions have been confirmed - I need a haircut!

And now I shall tag Jess, Kim, and Rima.

Have a good rest of the weekend!

When Dinner Explodes in the Oven...

 ...you start wondering if it's too early to indulge.

Now, I don't think I'm a Mad Housewife, but there was no way I was walking out of the store without this wine last week. Here's what the label says on the back of the bottle:

Somewhere near the cool shadows of the laundry room. Past the litter box and between the plastic yard toys. This is your time. Time to enjoy a moment to yourself. A moment without the madness. The dishes can wait. Dinner be damned.

I chuckled all the way to the cash register. 

Okay, back to dinner. So this evening I put said dinner in the oven: frozen Cod in a Pyrex dish alongside a gaggle of cream cheese wontons and mini eggrolls. Fifteen minutes later I went back to the 400 degree portal of hell oven, opened the door to check on dinner's progress, and KA-BLAM! The Pyrex dish totally exploded into a million pieces inside the oven as I opened the door - I don't think I even screamed or anything, I was just too shocked. So into the garbage went our dinner, doused in shards of glass. (I was soooo tempted to phone-out for pizza and almost gave in to my son's persuasions, but I whipped up some pasta with pesto instead. I must be getting old. Good grief!)

It's been a day, so I'll be signing off now for a little beverage and some knitting on this:

What is it, you ask? Why, it's a February Lady! I've never knit a sweater for myself before, but dangnabbit, Lady, I'm gonna make you mine...

Outdoors :: At Last!

I do declare, this has been the nicest Spring we've had in a long while - all this week the weather has been just lovely, so we've been out walking. Here's some pics from one of our jaunts (or rather, when the littlest one is with us, it's more of a ramble or saunter) along one of the creeks that runs through the city:

Check out this HUGE tree! Juliet very much wanted to climb it:

We also encountered a VERY LARGE bunny:

Juliet climbed all over it and perched herself up on top of it's head for awhile, pretending she was riding off to Neverland:

Yeehaw!!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I've been busy raking and cleaning up our yard, uncovering some flower beds and getting the pots and window boxes ready for flowers and herbs. And now a simple question for you: What's your favorite flower to plant (or watch come back) each year? I love to hear what other people are planting in their gardens.  Me? As an annual I'd say Zinnias; perennially, I love Peonies, ants and all.(!)

Knit. Repeat.

I recently received an awesome package in the mail from Jess:

I just love the blue yarn, and I have the perfect project in mind for it. I've never knit and felted a bag before, but I'm gonna give this one a try - and embroider the heck out of it after it's felted; I've been feeling the itch to embroider lately.

Here's my Thermis cowl, all done. (Just in time for summer! teehee.)

I really loved this pattern, and I'm happy to have completed my first (wearable) cowl. (My saggy, baggy Delores Park is gonna be headed for the warshing machine for a little felting. Bad idea? Dunno, but at this point it's unwearable and I'm desperate.)

I've also cast on for a pair of socks, and I'm following the instructions and a stitch pattern from my new favorite book, Sensational Knitted Socks. A lady at the store where I bought the book said it was fantastic and the only book on socks I'll ever need, and I believe her; that, and it's high time I ventured out of my comfort zone and tried some socks with cool stitch patterns in them. So far I've had to restart a couple times because I couldn't wrap my brain around the yarn-overs, but now I'm truckin' right along in the hammer lane!

Hope you're having a fabulous week so far, and thanks for all the Wanderings love - I really appreciate your comments. I love 'ya, man!

Wanderings Coat :: Finished!

Oh man, it's finally done! I've been hard at work on this baby and I'm happy to report that yesterday I finished hemming the cuffs and Juliet got to wear it out to Granny's house. Here's a front view:

And the back:

My favorite thing about this little coat? The inside pocket (with mouse):

I guess the other pocket would be for goldfish crackers, or hair clips, or pretty rocks...most likely M&M's, though (let's get real here). Help.

So the pattern is the Wanderings Coat from Sugar City, and overall I'd say I loved it. For a novice like me the instructions were pretty clear and easy to follow. (I did get tripped-up when trying to assemble the two front panels to the back and the arms...don't know if it was just me or the instructions. But I figured it out, so whatever!) I loved that you're really free to be creative and imaginative when designing the interior of the coat - that was probably my favorite part. And the fabrics I used were all thrifted/from my stash; actually, the floral was once a tablecloth, heehee. The one thing I omitted was the interior batting, because I wanted the coat to be good for spring/fall weather - I'm planning to make another one with the batting for next winter. But let's not talk/think/write about winter right now, 'k? Or I'm likely to go completely berserk, and that would not be pretty.

We're supposed to have some damn good weather here this weekend - last I heard we'll be heading toward 60 degrees! I'll be spending the majority of my time at work, but let's not talk about that, either. Instead, I say we just throw open the windows and spend every waking nanosecond outdoors; I know I'm gonna!

Turn the Page...Tuesday

My friend Adrienne had a great idea to post once a month about a book you've recently (or not so recently) read and would love to share and recommend to others. Today I'm playing along:

I'm currently in the midst of reading Crow Lake by Mary Lawson, and liking it a whole lot. I haven't finished it yet, but I'm two-thirds of the way through, which is a darn good sign; I love to read, although I won't hesitate to put a book down if it doesn't pull me in, and this is definitely not one to add to the handful (or two) I've abandoned. I love books and stories that are emotional, resonant, and suspenseful, books that stake a place in your mind, and this is a book that does that for me. Here's a little blurb from Publisher's Weekly:

Four children living in northern Ontario struggle to stay together after their parents die in an auto accident in Lawson's fascinating debut, a compelling and lovely study of sibling rivalry and family dynamics in which the land literally becomes a character. Kate Morrison narrates the tale in flashback mode, starting with the fatal car accident that leaves seven-year-old Kate; her toddler sister, Bo; 19-year-old Luke; and 17-year-old Matt to fend for themselves.

And there you have it!  More book-love goodness at Adrienne's place.

Yesterday's News

Yesterday we got out for a much needed walk and some fresh air in the afternoon. (In the morning we awoke to a fresh blanket of snow on the ground - thank goodness it melted off by noon.)

We went to this park, which is just a short drive away from our house. We walked and walked, Juliet tried to climb some trees, we laid down on a bridge on our stomachs and watched bugs living above and below the water's surface, and we did a little gathering of pretty things:

 

Afterwards, we sat outside for awhile and tried to sketch said pretty things until it got too chilly.

I've never considered myself to be very skilled with a sketchpad and colored pencils, but it's fun trying.

In other news, I'm nearly finished with Juliet's Wanderings coat and the Thermis cowl. I'm biding my time until tonight, when the house is sleeping and I can get busy. Or maybe I'll just decide to kick back and watch this movie.

Anyhoo, here's to the beginning of a new week, although I don't know about any of y'all, but I'm thinking about putting out an APB for my mojo...! Feeling rather sluggish around here as of late...

Sunshine in a Box.

A very gray day out there yesterday:

(My view from the car as I was tooling around town...)

Clouds and rain, then hail, sun before dinner and snow before bed. The kind of day that seemed to go right along with my mood: a tad disjointed, at once tired and restless, inspired and unsatisfied.

And then:

Sunshine arrived (via UPS delivery man - I love you! Don't tell my husband...) in a box from my beloved aunt in Arizona: fresh oranges, lemons, and grapefruit from her very own backyard trees. (!)

We had oranges for afternoon snack(s) and I made this rice to go with our dinner of salmon and beets. (Thanks for sharing the yummy, Diane!)

And now?  Hellooooooo, April!  Please be lovely and warm and bring the promise of all things colorful and flowery on your wings. Ahem.