For sometime now, my niece Amaya (who will be 5 in August) has been saying that she wished she could knit. About two weeks ago I went out and bought her the shortest, fattest wooden needles I could find and some yarn in colors I thought she would like (orange and pinks).
One night when she was spending the night at our house, we sat down together and began to cast on. She could barely contain her excitement which led to much bounciness and squealing (and sincere gratitude). I showed her how I cast on and explained that everyone does things differently when it comes to knitting and the important thing was for her to do it the way that is most comfortable for her. Having never taught anyone how to knit, we had to work on finding what worked best for her little hands. So we practiced casting on for about 15 minutes or so and then it was bedtime. I told her she could practice at home and even if she forgot how she could pretend and just play around with the yarn and needles (which she calls 'beedles').




Last night was the first night since then that she has spent the night and so she brought her knitting gear. Again, we sat together and we got to practicing. She said she had forgotten how, but since the yarn was off the needles I assume she had been trying. Again, I began to show her how to cast on asking her what steps I should take to make my first loop. She directed me perfectly! I think her brain knew how to do it, but her hands had forgotten. I cast on two stitches for her and then passed the needles (beedles). The first few stitches she needed help keeping the yarn on the needles, after that very minimal intervention was needed on my part. We cast on eleven stitches. She was ecstatic. She declared she was making a blanket for her dolls.





Next I told her we would start the knitting part. This part was pretty easy since it is not much different for casting on. She had some trouble getting the loop off the left needle with out pulling off extra stitches, but she didn't give up. Soon she had knit eleven stitches and she was grinning ear to ear. I was so proud of her and not much beats seeing a 4 year old so proud of herself! I hope this excitement stays with her, what a treat this would be to pass this craft on to her. I'll keep you posted.

Growing Boy

This was the week we took the leap.
We converted Henry's crib to a toddler bed and it has been interesting. The first night he kept getting up and knocking on his door. Then he turned the radio up really loud which made him knock on the door even louder. At one point we opened the door and and all we could see was his feet leaping from the floor to his bed as he hurried to lie down before we got in. If anything it has been amusing. So far.
He is doing good though. Once he's in for the night (or nap) he's in. I really am loving that he can come to us in the mornings even though today I was awakened with a gentle poke in the eye. Hearing his little feet hurry to our bedside every morning is pure joy.

reunited or so I thought

I did it. I picked up the Jaywalker. I knit, I don't know, maybe 9 rounds. Then, guess what? I had been forgetting to k-f/b every other round. Aaarrgh! That poor sock sat in the basket for how long now, and I had to go and mess with it. I don't think I have it in me to go back and fix these errors. I am giving myself 24 hours to think about it. My initial instinct is to completely frog it. *sigh* It is a tad snug when first getting it over my heel anyway.
So now I have two projects at a stand still (because of my errors) and one that is definitely getting frogged, all sharing the pity basket.

Life to the Fullest

We had such a busy, full day Friday. First we had a relaxed, slow morning (we had it coming to us). Then we had a trip to the doctor to check on the little peanut (all is well). Next it was home for a light lunch because the boy had been snacking all morning long. After nap the real fun and adventure began.
It started with a small snack, what else, and for me, occasionally that is an adventure. Then on to some watercolor painting and yes, tasting.



Now it was time for some much needed fresh air and that is where the caterpillar hunt began. It all started with the signal for potty. I took him behind the trash can on the side of our house and let loose with the pants and diaper. Of course he wouldn't/couldn't go. If he had he may have drowned caterpillar #1. We put that one in the bug box with some sticks and leaves and watched him for a bit. After a while we put it back where we found it and started to draw with chalk. No kidding, this boy turns around and one after the other spots 3 more caterpillars all around the garage doors! Two of them were at least 8 feet high. Amazing what children really observe. He was on a mission. I am so glad to have been on it with him.

Are you ready for some baseball?

I consider myself lucky to be married to a man who is not a sports fanatic. I generally don't know when a sport season begins or ends. We do not watch a lot of sports in this house. The sports we both played are actually a little dull to watch. He was a runner and I played volleyball (which unless you play or played is not all that fun to watch). However, we both get into baseball. Actually, me a little more than him or at least I am more vocal when I am watching a game. Our boy is getting interested in it also. By interested I mean that he can say baseball and pretends to throw a ball as he says it. He is interested in balls of all types (what boy isn't?). On our way to the airport one day I pointed out Turner Field and said baseball, on the return trip he did the same. My little genius. I am itching to take him to his first major league game. Oh, I can't wait. And we're going to have to go soon because in the near future it will be unbearably hot and I will be too fat to tolerate it.

So I had this brilliant idea that we should go to the neighborhood park and watch a game with Henry. A practice run. Makes sense right? The weather has been perfect (though we could use some rain) so we took a picnic dinner to the park, played on the playground for a while and lo and behold there was a girls' softball tournament going on! We packed up our stuff and started to walk over to the fields and they were charging people to get in. We said 'no thanks, we were just going to show him a game'. The nice ladies told us to go on in, no charge. Thank you! So we hoofed it over to the nearest diamond. It wasn't really that far, but I had just eaten and when I am full I look much more preggers than I actually am.

At first Henry was in awe. He had seen baseball on television, but to see it in person and it was kids playing! Wow! He watched for about 5 minutes and at that point figured he wanted to give it a go. That boy wanted on that field so bad he was trying to climb the fence. It took a while to explain that he couldn't go out there with the big kids, poor guy. He did enjoy clapping and watching all of the other parents hoot and holler though. And boy, do they hoot and holler. They were hardcore.



We ended up staying for about 15 minutes, but a good time was had. I think this weekend we'll take him to the park and let him run the bases all he wants.

A Wee Bit Rough

The little ones around here had rough time last night.
A few nights a week our niece, Amaya (age 4), spends the night because my sister works nights at a hospital. When she got here I could tell she was in a kind of funk. I asked her a few times if anything was wrong and she told me no. I let it go. If she wanted to tell she would when she was ready. I was in my room getting my things together to go to knit night (never went) when she came in and climbed up on my bed. I looked at her and saw she was starting to cry. Poor thing. I sat with her and she told me she hated school "cause it's boring and we don't get to talk when we want to talk and we always have to do homework and we still have to be quiet when its playtime". This is pre-k. I can't say I blame her. I had no idea what to tell her. That it's probably only going to get worse? All I could do was hold her and tell her I was sorry she felt that way and she needs to talk to her mom about this and I know it can be hard to follow rules sometimes (she's been getting a 'yellow' which apparently means she's been having trouble listening and following directions). Seriously. What do you say to a 4 year old that is already miserable at school? I know some of this is because her teacher is on vacation and the assistant teacher is in charge. From what my sister says the class has been a bit unruly. As in my sister was telling kids to sit down and listen to the teacher the other day when she dropped Amaya off because the asst. teacher was already losing control. I imagine it has been a stressful week so far in that classroom (for everyone).
She also went on to say that she never wants to be a mom. She just wants to stay four and be with her mom. She said she never wants to grow up. I told she has a lot of time to stay a kid, but wouldn't it be sad not to celebrate her birthday every year? I think she forgot about birthdays. She said she still didn't want to be a mom and wants to stay little. Her favorite movie right now is Peter Pan. Hmmmm.
I just hope this girl is having a rough week. It happens to us all. Hopefully, next week has a brighter outlook for her.
I sure felt like I failed her though.



Henry's rough spot came last night right before bed when he fell or rather 'stepped' off a dining room chair onto nothing. First he hit the table, which gave him a bit of a spin, then he landed face first on the floor. All the while I am across the room seeing this happen (and it replayed in my mind all night long). I scooped him up, blood of course pouring from his mouth, and got him a glass of water to rinse it. As soon as he had a drink he was ready to get down and play with Amaya. Thank goodness she was here. Nothing like a good distraction to fix a boo-boo quickly. It looked pretty bad though. He busted his top lip open and we thought he had bit is bottom lip all the way through just a little bit. This morning that doesn't seem the case. Anyway, mama made a quick trip to the store for some sugar laden popsicles. When I got home, Amaya was already asleep and the boy and papa were in bed watching baseball. Needless to say, this boy loved that popsicle. Loved it.
He's a toughie though, and he's got two fat lips to prove it.

Proud Wife

This past Friday, Matt and I attended the first annual Georgia Artists exhibit at the Abernathy Arts Center. Matt submitted three sculptures to the arts committee and they chose one to show at this exhibit. We had a good time and got to see some great works by several artists. The most amusing moment for me was when we were standing near Matt's sculpture soon after we arrived and we overheard this:

Wife to husband (sour look on her face), "Matt Lewis? Never heard of him. Have you?"
Husband responds by shrugging and then shaking head no. They keep moving on.

We pretty much looked at each other and just started laughing. I suggested starting a whisper campaign a la Kermit the Frog. I'm embarrassed to repeat what Matt suggested I say, but it was quite funny and it made my tea almost come out my nose.

After we made the rounds, we went outside for a bit. There we were treated to a stunning show by a red-shouldered hawk.
It was a beauty. We even go to see it catch its dinner, or rather appetizer, because I don't think it was finished. We decided we should let it feast in peace and returned indoors for the awards ceremony.


When we returned we got the highlight of the evening which was seeing the red dot on the name card next to Matt's sculpture.
It sold! One of two pieces that sold opening night. Pretty exciting. I even teared up a bit (maybe a lot). I am so proud of him. I know it can be difficult to put your work into the world and have it be judged, so for his sculpture to sell was so thrilling. He works so hard and is truly gifted. I am so glad he got this small ego boost that all artists need on occasion.


And, just one more photo from the night. One of my favorites. These two were sitting here talking (a bit loudly) during the entire awards ceremony. I found it entirely amusing as well as their conversation, at least the bits I heard. They reminded me of Statler and Waldorf.

Oh yes, and if you would like to see more of Matt's work please visit here. It's just a small sampling, website is in (slow) progress.

Pollen-nation

Yesterday I mentioned the pollen problem. Today, more of the same. It is really so unbearable, we can't play outside. Even sitting inside I feel as if the inside of my mouth is coated in pollen. I cannot get enough water, let me tell ya. All of us are suffering some sinus issues. Walking from the car to the front door and my shoes are coated in this stuff! They say it will rain tomorrow (fingers and toes are crossed!). The rain boots are ready! Everything around here could use a good pollen rinse, even if it only lasts a short time.



*this photo was taken yesterday, so the table looks a bit worse today.

Still Life: Day Seven

Whew! Sorry about the funk yesterday, hope it wasn't contagious. Much better day today. And, I am actually finishing my week of Still Lifes. Woohoo! I'm actually finishing something!

The weather here is beautiful. When I say beautiful, I mean bee-ee-yoo-teee-fulll! There is a downside though. No, really, just hear me out. Everything is covered in pollen. Including us if we stay out for more than 5 minutes. We're practically eating it if we are outside. The windows and doors have to remain shut because if they don't every surface in the house is then coated in a nice greeny-yellowish dust and who knows when I would actually get around to cleaning that up. It's quite gross, to be honest. I hope it rains soon.

Still Life: Day Six

Do you ever have one of those days where just one person can put a damper on your day? I'm having one of those days. What's worse is I know I shouldn't let this person have this much effect on my day, so it's like a double damper. Fooey.

I think I will go lie down for a bit and then pretend it's a new day when I get up.

Still Life: Day Five

Yeah, I missed a few days. I tried. I really did. I just got hit with a horrible sinus infection so, alas, I barely picked up my head let alone the camera.
Now to finish off my week of Still Lifes.

This was my first digital camera. It was a gift. A Kodak EasyShare CX6330

It has been broken now for at least two and half years. Someone I used to work with dropped it and a teeny little piece of plastic that goes where the batteries go fell out. That's it. I have yet to take it in to see if can be fixed (and if it's worth the price). I've been wanting a smaller digital camera to be able to just grab and throw in the diaper bag whenever we leave the house. Most days I don't want to lug or risk injury to my 'nice' camera. I think this will be the week to take in the Kodak.

I have a problem when it comes to cameras. Actually, I have this problem with most technological goodies. I am not a technically inclined person per se, I just have techno envy. Bad. I always have camera envy. Always have, always will. Lens envy too. It's ridiculous to oooh and aaahhh over a camera lens, especially in public. It may embarrass my husband a bit too, though he would never say. He might just say I'm a dork and leave it at that. Most Apple products give me horrendous techno envy. Finally, we got a Mac when our 12 year old Dell got really, really sick (it was great up until the end). I love my Mac, but now I wish I had gotten the laptop (and hello!, the Macbook Air blows my mind). Then it was iphone (I got over that really quickly actually), and now it is the ipod touch. Their products are beautiful. I know they have their flaws, but man are they slick! Now the other problem I have with this is the greedy feeling I get while having all this techno lust (and I haven't even touched upon the cameras!) I. Hate. The. Greediness. I have no need for these things. The toys I have now work great, are great products, and get done what I want and need to get done. I blame it on the marketing. How dare they market those shiny, fun, gadgets to me! Mass Consumer Marketing = 1, me = 0.

Still Life: Day Four

Well, the belly is coming. Slowly. Somehow I forgot that you really don't just wake up with a cute little baby belly. No. You first have to go through that awkward stage of not really fitting into your clothes comfortably, yet not being really big enough for maternity clothes to fit comfortably (or well) either. Today my pants have those adjustablethingies on the inside. So the fabric is all scrunched up over my rear, which needs no help in the bulk department. And I am still pulling my pants up constantly. I'm ready to put my pj's on, let me tell you.

Last night we could feel the little Peanut sitting very low in my belly. Literally, just this hard tiny bump on my lower left side. I was amazed. It seems early to feel the baby. The Peanut wasn't moving, just cozyin' up I guess. Henry was a rock star in there. I wonder if this one will be as mobile.

As I said, the Big Bad Baby blanket is coming along. I am really enjoying this project. It is my second one and it is just a nice relaxing, simple knit. Just what I need right now. Since I started this early I also feel no pressure. Poor Henry had just turned one when he finally received his blanket. It is loved though and that is all that matters.


The Peanuts:


The Beans:

Still Life: Day Three

While I may complain (often) of my geographic location, there are definitely some perks.
The dogwoods are a-bloomin and they are bee-yoo-ti-ful.

Still Life: Day Two

My favorite room in our house is Henry's room. This is the first room in our home to have been completely redone by us (and by us I mean Matt). So much love and thought went into the planning of this room. It is the smallest room, but the brightest and happiest room. Before Henry's arrival, Matt asked me if I ever just came and sat in the room with door shut and pretended it was a different house. He asked me this because it is so unlike the other rooms and it reminds us both of some of the older houses we lived in and loved (and hated) when we were in Savannah. These pictures are not the details of the room but just things that help make it distinctly Henry's room. Lots of great music is played to and danced to in this room. Lulu the sheep is rocked on almost nightly right before bed. The bird is part of a toy Henry has enjoyed for over a year now and I imagine will enjoy for a few more years. While Henry's room is very simple, it is his space and it is one all of us love.