Dishcloth Topic #3

Well now that Summer has OFFICIALLY begun.. what do you do to beat the heat? A nice tall glass of lemonade? Frozen Coffee? A dip in the pool? What's your favorite way to keep cool this summer as things heat up?

We love lemonade here. I have a great lemon tree. If we juice the lemons and freeze the juice, then we can drink lemonade year round from the tree. And this is the closest I'll get to a Friday Flower photo this week. I lucked out having this photo already on the computer. Probably one 6 took again, as he's always wandering the yard with my camera.


I sure wish I had a pool, even a community one. I miss getting into the water. I swam competitively in High School and even tried springboard diving in college. Now days, when I'm at the pool, I'm on surveillance duty making sure none of my 3 little ones drown. It's just not the same.

Vegas!

I had a great weekend! M and I were in Vegas for 2 nights with no kids! We started off getting to see all the family at the Rehearsal Dinner. We got a tip from the Pastor that was officiating about a good place to buy fireworks. We bought some for us, and some presents for my brother. ( You can imagine the kind of guy he is when explosives make a great gift.) The fireworks were on an Indian Reservation...and the reservation was the gateway to this...

It was breathtaking. I stand in awe of the Creator.

And then after a dip in the pool to cool off and a quick shower, we witnessed this. Love! No photo I took captured the sparkle in their eyes.

Even though it was 106 and the wedding was outside, we were sitting in the shade and there were misters. And the wedding was so beautiful, I completely forgot about being HOT.

Then back inside for the reception. I think one of the most special moments was the bride and her 4 sisters dancing together in a circle holding hands to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

We headed home on Sunday, and I seem to have brought a cold back to California. At first I thought it was just the dessert heat not agreeing with my allergies, but this is a full blown cold. I want it to go away so I can enjoy my summer.

Thank You!

Thank you all for your quick knitting fingers. And we'll pray the angels that are the USPS fly fast too. I think with the squares now I'm good. Especially since this is baby blanket size. It will either be 30 x 30 or 30 x 40. That's a good size. I'm off for the weekend. It's been too long since M and I have had 2 nights away! I've got knitting for the car packed.

How quick could I do this?

On Monday, a friend delivered a 10# 6oz baby boy at a birthing center (no drugs)! He was without oxygen for too long because the cord was wrapped around his neck. The paramedics arrived and he was airlifted to the hospital. It will be a few days before the extent of the damage can be evaluated.

If I wanted to pull together a blanket...how quickly could I do this? In the comments, could I get a roll call from knitters/hookers who could mail me a 10" square? Cotton. Blues. Any pattern. This could be dishcloth cotton. Or something super soft. If I do 10", then I only need 9 squares to make a 30" square blanket. More would allow a bigger blanket, but if I only get 9 then I'm not scurrying to knit more squares. Am I crazy? Or is this doable?

I'll start it off with the square I knit out of blue cotton-ease. This was to be my pal's washcloth...but I can make another in the time alloted.


And since time is of the essence, let's do this quick. I know a dishcloth only takes a night to knit up.

I couldn't believe this was organic!

But, I had to buy it. 3 is with her Nana this week, so I thought I'd do some special things with the boys. We still had many errands to run. At Smart & Final, we found this...looks like a whipped cream can.

The begged and pleaded. I would have bought it without the begging. I realized that I'm not usually awake enough to make pancakes in the morning. So, I decided to have a Breakfast for Dinner Night. Heat some sausage in the microwave. Scramble up a bunch of eggs. My kind of dinner.


Then on to the entertainment....


See the little face in the corner here. =0) too cute!

I think one of my favorite presents last Christmas was this 2 burner cast iron pan. It flips, and the reverse side has grill marks. I've not used that side yet though. Seriously, this makes pancakes or grilled cheese for a crowd more manageable.


While the Batter Blaster was fun, it was just enough for the 4 of us though. This would feed maybe one teenage boy. So, it's not really cost effective. But, the fun factor is there...it was worth it for a 1-time deal. And the pancakes...just like regular ones.


Except we don't normally eat white pancakes. I've been making my cousin's oatmeal pancakes for over a year now.

***credit for all photography here goes to 6***

Dishcloth Topic #2

This week's topic:

Living in Atlanta, I know Summer has truly 'arrived' when it begins to get humid. Blech. When I was a kid, I knew Summer was starting the easy way - School was out!! Share with us how you know that summer has truly 'arrived', or something that signifies the start of Summer in your world.

Today it's HOT! My thermometer in the shade says 98. I just talked to M, and he passed a digital thermometer on the road that says 103. I don't care what number you give it...IT'S HOT! We were at the park in the morning, with a stop at the grocery store on the way home. 6 said, "Let's just stay here [the freezer aisle] for the entire summer!"

Growing up, we didn't A/C, I think then summer was the buzz of the box fan. And of course, the last day of school.

For a few years, I've been at home with toddlers. There was no real structure to my seasons. But, this is the first year that I've had one in school. The last day of school was really special. And this time, I'm not sure if it was more special to me or to him.

Purple Day!

Remember in March when we celebrated GREENDAY. And how my my kids decided it would be fun to celebrate other colors. Well, I decided to invite over a different family for each color day throughout the summer. Two weeks ago we celebrated RED day with some friends. My only regret from that day was not taking photos. I remedied that last week when we celebrated PURPLE with some different friends. Our morning started with PURPLE sprinkles in yogurt.

And then a walk around the yard to pick some PURPLE flowers to decorate with.

My kids were playing with PURPLE play dough when our friends arrived. They joined in, and then we all moved on to PURPLE collages.

We played with PURPLE balloons on the parachute.


We made PURPLE bracelets.


Our lunch was PURPLE. Even the Ranch for the chips had some Wilton in it.

And after lunch, we read PURPLEICIOUS. Thanks Jen for lending us the book. And then on to some blow painting. Red + Blue = PURPLE!


We ended the day with some PURPLE jello. WE HAD SO MUCH FUN! Thanks to S, A, & E for celebrating with us.

(Not all of our color days will be this involved, but S was as excited about this as I was...so we went all out. And many of the purple supplies were left over from 3's birthday. We didn't even get to use the tissue paper or ribbon that we had.)

Ravelry Update

No time to post...I just spent 2 hours adding to my stash on Ravelry. I'm going to be working on adding my WIP's and FO's as well. If you want to see what I've been up to head over here.

Swiffer!

On Mother's Day, M took the kids into the front yard to wash my car. And I got to rest on the chaise in the back yard with my knitting. I took the time to CO something new. This Swiffer Cover is such a quick knit. I just used one yarn...and I like the way the colors worked out.

And it actually matches my Swiffer a bit.

But...the real reason I LOVE this...look how well it picks up dirt. I'm feeling green and trying to do away with disposable cleaning products.

My next project is to replace my recycled Trader Joe's brown bags with some string and fabric shopping bags. I hope this goal doesn't kill me. I'm usually coming home from the grocery store with 20-30 plastic bags...and the thought of that in our landfills is just killing me. But, 20-30 cute shopping bags...that could take my entire summer. And I have lots of other knitting on my goals list.

Santa Monica

I started this post at 7am...and I've just now sat down to spell check. It's a long one. I didn't realize I had so much to say.

May was a crazy month with the end of school. I just knew that I couldn't relax while I had so many loose ends. So I waited to celebrate my birthday with family until now. We spend the day in Santa Monica. This did include a brief visit to Wildfiber. I'm trying to encourage my kids to love fiber. We all know they have many years of LYS visits ahead of them so if they enjoy it, it will be better for all of us. (My LYS has a bin of buttons, and if I just bring one of my boys then he'll sit with the buttons while I shop...perfect distraction...all LYS should have this.) At Wildfiber, I let each of the boys choose something. I started to teach 6 finger knitting last week. He had started with a random ball of wool from my stash, but I knew he needed a bulky yarn. He chose this from the clearance bin...and has already started again.

5 chose roving. Right now he basically pulls it out of the bag to rub it on his cheek. He chose this for the coloring and for the softness. And...a little trick in there...I figure this is the kid I can teach to spin. He's amazing with a top, we learned how amazing during Hanukkah last year. So, I'm going to have M make a drop spindle and we'll see what we get. I only bought 5 yards. So it's not too big of an experiment. But, seriously...how did roving make it into my car...and back to my house. I was so going to focus on my stash.


I had to have him lay down to get this shot. When he pulled the ball out of the bag this morning I couldn't get over how close a match it was to his hair.


3, my little bookworm, picked up a copy of EZ's Knitter's Almanac. She can't read...so how could she have known that I've been wanting to buy this. A small paperback that's only $7.95. How could I not buy it. Now, I'll finally get to knit a February baby sweater. I'm sure some kind people will have babies for me...since I'm done. And then I can borrow the baby for knitwear modeling. But...I so don't have to be the one awake in the middle of the night.

The rest of my purchases were cotton. So, I can't show you. Some of this yarn will be boxed up and sent far away for my Dishcloth Swap Pal. I can tell you that I bought Patagonia Nature Cotton and Araucania Pomaire. They are both sooo lovely.

We stopped by Bay Cities Imports for their 'Godmother' sandwich and took the picnic to Palisades Park. I love being 'at the beach,' but not having to walk on the sand. It was a great picnic and my kids had fun with their cousins.

Then I took out my knitting so it could see the beach too. I've attached the 6th ball of yarn. I need to work on this as the wedding is in 2 weeks. But, I'm loosing speed.

And here's my Saturday Sky. This was my view as I laid back on the picnic blanket. It was a gorgeous day. Probably 75 and a bit of a breeze.

I do have something else to post. I finished a swiffer cover. I just need the photos. But, after that, I might be gone the rest of the week. I visit my endodontist again on Wednesday. If you could pray that this one is as pain/panic free as possible I'd really appreciate that. And I'm hoping that I don't miss out on too much as I'll be drugged up again. While he's working on tooth #5, he'll also be checking for a fracture on #28. So, this might not be my last visit this summer.

Did you read how songs help me to keep my focus? Well, this song has convicted me...has my heart not been in the right place as I've walked this tough road. Listen to the story behind the song. I want this to be my prayer. That in all this...I could bring HIM glory. That I could Praise HIM in the midst of my pain.

Dishcloth Topic #1

For this week's topic, make a post on your own blog sharing YOUR favorite pattern(s) with us! Don't have a favorite site? That's fine! Show us a photo of one of the cloths you have made and really loved, even if it was just a made up pattern!

I'm not sure that I have a favorite pattern. I've only made a few washcloths. Last summer, I knit a few of the ballband. And for my kids Easter baskets this year, I knit the plain old diagonal squares (Ravelry link). **I just realized that I had the yarn a whole 6 months before I started those. ** Those might actually be my favorite because that's the pattern my Gram taught me the first time I learned to knit (the summer I was 12). There's something comforting about how timeless this pattern is.

I just found a pattern that I'm going to knit my pal. I was browsing Ravelry and found this one. I love it.

State Flowers

I don't have a flower photo to share today, but I've been looking at flowers all day. In preparing for our 2008-2009 school year, I've been printing off color pages with state flowers and birds. I'm getting these from homeschool share.

Last fall, 6 started to ask what 1st grade would look like (he's always thinking ahead). He asked what we would do after our Nations study. He though for a minute, then suggested we study the states. This spring, as I started to think about next year, I decided he was right. We've enjoyed our Five in a Row studies. And since I pulled books from all 4 volumes to match each country we studied with our co-op, the books about America are the ones we have left. It will be a good fit.

A friend gave each of my boys a copy of Our 50 States. It's a beautiful book! We'll really enjoy using it this entire year as I've taken the road map from the inside cover as a way to schedule our calendar. We're beginning with Massachusetts in September and ending with Hawaii in May. We'll cover about half of our 50 states...and read many fun books along the way. I'm going to record our journey here. I hope I can keep up with it the entire year. I still have half of last year saved as drafts ready to post. I will finish those up as I'm able to add the photos.

In a way, this will be a virtual version of my dream RV trip. I'm not sure we'll ever have the money to take a real trip like this. But, if we get the chance, our notebooks will serve as fun travel guides.

This is the part of homeschooling that allows me to keep my 3yo excited about school (reading and coloring) and engaged with our 'group' school time. This is the part that I'm sure I can do. This is the creative part of me that comes naturally. The language arts and math have me a bit (or maybe a lot) nervous as I'll be teaching 2 kids next year. It's hard to have one-on-one time with each of my kids. If you've got any great suggestions on that...let me know.

WOW HITS!

For the last 5 Christmas'. Maybe longer. I've gotten the WOW Hits CD from my MIL. This has to be one of my favorite gifts. I have a 3-disk changer in the living room, and it's always WOW CD's in there. I've learned that music makes such a difference in my day.

Psalm 121

¹ I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?

² My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

³ He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;

⁴ indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵ The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;

⁶ the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

⁷ The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;

⁸ the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

And how do I keep my eyes on the Lord??? Especially when I'm headed back to the endodontist on the 11th for my 11th root canal? Well for me, music makes all the difference. This has been a rough year in my life. And I know that without HOPE of HEAVEN, I'd find myself crawling back into bed many days and trying to escape the harshness of this world. Music helps me to take my eyes off this world...and keep them on the eternity.

So, check out WOW HITS if you've never listened to this before. You might be surprised by how the words speak to your soul.

This post comes to you because of a fabulous contest over at Rocks In My Dryer. But, really...I love this music...and some of the songs I've linked to before are from this CD. So, I'd be telling ya about this even if it weren't for the contest. Well, maybe not an entire post...but still...go listen.

Summer Knitting Goals

I've always hesitated at the sight of Mr. Linky. But, I know that I can't wait forever. And today, there are two posts for contests that are on the top of my list. So, let's see if I do this right.

1. finish the wedding afghan (Wedding June 21st)
2. finish Roza's socks (just realized I've never taken a photo of these)
   
3. Dishcloths for the swap
4. felt those 2 hats
5. sew a lining in my sunset bag
6. Get squarecake on the new needles
7. tidy up my WIP's
   
8. load photos of stash to Ravelry
9. choose at least WIP to finish
10. CO a new project from my stash

WOW! That doesn't seem that ambitious. But, my other summer goals are...

1. Plan school year for 1st grader and Kindergartener (there will probably be much freaking out in August when the reality of homeschooling 2 sets in. In some ways, it's probably no different than this year. But I am responsible for keeping their paperwork separate and that's just something I'm not good at.)
   
2. clean out clothes from closets that no longer fit my kids
3. work at VBS
   
4. Paint the hall (in August it will have been 4 years since I peeled the wallpaper)
5. finish changing out the knobs on the kitchen cabinets (started this last summer, and my knee put a jag in getting to the upper cupboards...so currently, my kitchen is 50/50 with 2 different knobs)

I'd like to have more goals...but I'm afraid of being unrealistic. I do have the rest of life still. Head on over to Skeins Her Way and add yourself to the Mr. Linky.

Swap Time!

The Questionnaire

***Summer Dishcloth Exchange***

Please post to your blog no later than the end of registration June 6th!

1. Do you Knit or Crochet? For how long? I'm a knitter. It's been 4 1/2 years now.

2. Do you enjoy using metal, wooden, or some other kind of needle\hook? I like bamboo, Addi's, I have some Hiya Hiya for magic loop, and I have some Bryspun DPN's. I think the needles need to match the project. I don't think I would like #1 bamboo DPN's because my kids are likely to break them too quickly. I have Addi DPN's for that. I just bought a new bamboo #5 circ for my SquareCake because the silk was too slippery on metal.

3. What are your favorite types of yarn? Any you just can't stand? Araucania, Dream in Color, Koigu, Collinette Jitterbug...this list could go on and on. 000

I'm not sure that I need any fun fur or Homespun. I knit scarves with both of those when I first learned to knit...and that's enough for a lifetime. Other than that...I think I'm open to try new things.

4. When it comes to cotton, are there any brands you'd love to try and haven't? So far, I've only had the Sugar n' Cream. And I've used the Cottontots by Bernat. I've seen the Lion Organic Cotton, but haven't had a project to try it on yet. I'm sure there are lots of cottons to try. I think I'd like to try the Panda Cotton for some socks.

5. When you make Dishcloths, do you use them yourself, or tend to give them as gifts? Some of both.

6. Do you have a favorite color? Any that you dislike? I love blues...Sea Blues, Sky Blues, Denims, the blue of my Gram's eyes...that live in my daughter.

7. What color(s) (if any!) are your kitchen and bath decorated in? My bath towels are a smokey blue-gray. My kitchen walls are a sunny yellow. I'm leaning towards redecorating with Swedish things in the kitchen...so colors of a dala horse.

8. What are your favorite scents around the house? Grapefruit& Apple for summer. Cinnamon for fall/winter.

9. What is your very favorite thing about summer? NO SCHOOL (I've loved homeschooling my kids...and I'm excited about next year. But, to not have to keep record of all the fun things we do will be freeing.)

10. What is your least favorite thing about summer? It's HOT!

11. Do you use soap or body wash in the shower? Bodywash

12. What scents do you enjoy in the bath? Freesia, Grapefruit (God Bless Bath & Body Works)

13. What is your favorite dishcloth pattern? The Ballband. But, just recently, I knit up a pentagon in cotton that was on Knitty Gritty as a modular knits coaster. I think it could be a great washcloth/dishcloth. I used the 55 stitches for the trial one. My next one will be bigger.

14. What sort of treats do you enjoy? Sweet or Salty? Dark Chocolate...Dried Fruit...

15. Imagine today is one of the hottest days of the year - what do you do to keep cool? Or are you one of those folks who loves the hot weather?

16. What sorts of hobbies do you enjoy besides knitting or crocheting? Gardening. Reading.

17. Do you collect anything (besides yarn!) I just noticed, with my new mug from Carly, that I must collect Starbucks cups...since almost all of them in the cupboard are Starbucks. And I love all the cool tape measures. I got the bee from Ursula. And I have one of Anita's that M put in my stocking. I also have a great leather one my MIL bought me at Brighton. That's not a big collection. But, they're so cool who can have just one.

18. Are you on Ravelry? If so, share your ID! aDayInTheLife

19. Do you have any allergies? Shellfish...so that means that the tofutsies scares me. Strawberries, and Mangoes. Penicillin too, but I'm sure antibiotics won't end up in my swap box. ;0)

20. Do you have any pets? Do the kids count? Oh, I mean a leopard gecko.

Morning and Evening

The following is from a book, Morning and Evening, by Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Here are today's thoughts. June 1st. I just had to record this.

"The evening and the morning were the first day."
--Genesis 1:5

Was it so even in the beginning? Did light and darkness divide the realm of time in the first day? Then little wonder is it if I have also changes in my circumstances from the sunshine of prosperity to the midnight of adversity. It will not always be the blaze of noon even in my soul concerns, I must expect at seasons to mourn the absence of my former joys, and seek my Beloved in the night. Nor am I alone in this, for all the Lord's beloved ones have had to sing the mingled song of judgment and of mercy, of trial and deliverance, of mourning and of delight. It is one of the arrangements of Divine providence that day and night shall not cease either in the spiritual or natural creation till we reach the land of which it is written, "there is no night there." What our heavenly Father ordains is wise and good.

What, then, my soul, is it best for thee to do? Learn first to be content with this divine order, and be willing, with Job, to receive evil from the hand of the Lord as well as good. Study next, to make the outgoings of the morning and the evening to rejoice. Praise the Lord for the sun of joy when it rises, and for the gloom of evening as it falls. There is beauty both in sunrise and sunset, sing of it, and glorify the Lord. Like the nightingale, pour forth thy notes at all hours.

Believe that the night is as useful as the day. The dews of grace fall heavily in the night of sorrow. The stars of promise shine forth gloriously amid the darkness of grief. Continue thy service under all changes. If in the day thy watchword be labour, at night exchange it for watch. Every hour has its duty, do thou continue in thy calling as the Lord's servant until He shall suddenly appear in His glory. My soul, thine evening of old age and death is drawing near, dread it not, for it is.

This is where my thoughts have been lately. This seems to sum it up well. Life is not all the "blaze of noon". That's my favorite thought from this. Friday, I was again at a funeral. (I guess I am a bit in the night still...but I see the hint of blue skies...morning is coming again.) A dear friend lost her battle to cancer. She was 80. Her son is the coach of a local high school football team. And as support, the ENTIRE football team was at the service with ties on. If you know high school boys, then you know how big this was. I'm praying for those boys. In group that size, I'm sure that at least one of them is pondering 'what comes after this life'. And our pastor presented the message of HOPE so well.