Tiny Bubbles? I Don't Think So!

Yesterday was a bubble kind of day. The kids found a couple of bubble recipes on-line and have been trying to perfect them. I think they've just about got the recipe right.

R made her 'bubble maker' from a straw cut in two, for handles, and yarn tied into a circle laced through the straw handles. That's her to the right showing how she swoops her hands and the bubbles just come out. This is a great bubble recipe, but it makes some pretty thick bubbles. Believe me, when one of these bubbles pops, you do not want to be underneath!

I love this picture. Kind of looks like the moon right above the trees.

L finished his year end testing that is required by the state for home schoolers. We both were really dreading it! It didn't help that he had a cold and felt crummy. Crummy or not, he did a terrific job! I was so proud of him. He hadn't been doing well in Math the past few years, but he really pumped up his score and surprised even himself!

Knitting is still going on. I've got another generic pair on the needles. I looked through my stash the other day for inspiration and found some yarn that has been sitting there for so long, I don't know how old it is, where I got it or even where the label is. Oh well, they are turning out, so I can't complain. I have no idea what R is knitting...probably a number of projects! She's wanting to sew soon, so we'll just add that to the list. I don't blame her. I've been itching to sew a few small projects too. Check out Thimbleanna's blog and see all the wonderful things she crafts! Ah, to be so talented!

Reading is also one of our enjoyable past times right now. I started reading 'Tom Sawyer' at night before bed. Then I thought the kids would really enjoy it. So, in the evenings when we sit outside after dinner, I've started reading it out loud. It's fun to hear the kids laugh at the parts they really enjoy. I have never tired of reading to them and I'm so happy they haven't tired of it either. When trying to get us to nap when we were kids, Mom would read to us. I loved that. She would do all the voices just right. Sometimes I would lie next to her and watch her mouth move and all those neat voices come out!

Lately I've been feeling a little like Ginger. This picture kind of sums it up. Wonder where I can find a paper bag big enough...

Yet Another Pair

Yippee! I finished another pair of socks! I'm trying to work on small projects that aren't too warm to knit. This has been my latest 'knit while on the front porch after dinner' project. The pattern is from 'Cozy Socks' and is the Zig Zag pattern. I have made Jaywalkers before and couldn't get them over my fat ankle. These, however, look a little like Jaywalkers and fit! YES! Can you tell I'm blessed. I'm even more blessed that the yarn is from my stash!

'Little Miss M' has arrived next door. She was the lucky recipient of the bunny hat I made some time back. I had her in mind when I made it, but she just wasn't here yet! She's a little sweetie. Mom and Dad are having the usual horrible period of adjustment - you remember - no sleep! Oh, I remember well. I was so afraid that once I saw her I would want another baby. Just didn't happen this time, much to RLs relief! I don't care how much I might want one - it ain't gonna happen! Two babies with colic were enough for both of us.

I finished reading 'Captains Courageous' by Rudyard Kipling. What a great book. I really enjoyed it once I got into it. (Thanks for the recommendation Kate!) Now, what to read? I finished reading the book in the early afternoon and finished the socks last night. Too many finished projects and now I'm just left hanging here with nothing to read or knit. Maybe a trip to JoAnn's will take care of part of that problem...

RLs Dad finished his chemo treatments. They made such a big fanfare of it at the chemo place. It sounded so cute. The nurses all sang to him and then gave him and RLs Mom hugs and kisses. The people who work there are the sweetest people. Next they move on to 15 radiation treatments to the brain as a precaution. Cancer hasn't been spotted there and hopefully won't be. Please pray for them.

RL and R went to the farmer's market yesterday. We had the most delicious veggie dinner last night. R said it was officially summer now that we had a veggie dinner! L and I vegged out while they went. L is feeling puny. He caught a cold from a friend - gee, thanks for sharing!

Off to find some knitting and reading! Have a great week.

The Most Anticipated Birth of the Year

No, I'm not talking about Nicole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey or even Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's babies. Our neighbors have been wanting a baby for some time now - like five years! They decided to go through the adoption process and now are awaiting the baby. Actually, the baby was born, but there are so many things that have to be legally taken care of, that we will finally get to meet him/her in a couple of days. I'm almost as excited about the arrival of this little one as I was about my own. At first I was thinking they were so lucky not to have to deal with nine months of morning sickness, weight gain, etc. However, I'm beginning to think the stuff they've had to go through is just as bad - the waiting and waiting for an available baby, the legal paperwork, in-home studies, not to mention the fear that the birth parents will back out at the last minute. I'm fighting the urge to run over there the minute I see their car pull in to the driveway, but I have to wait my turn. Many, many family members are way ahead of me! That hasn't stopped me from knitting or looking over all the baby patterns on the internet. It's so much fun to have a little one to knit for!

Although knitting has been going on I'm not ready to share any pictures. I've only got about two thirds of a sock finished and I'm still trying to decide how I feel about it. It's the zig zag sock from 'Knitted Socks' by Anna Tillman. There's a picture of a finished pair on the Knit Picks website. I have made at least three jaywalkers and none of them fit. Oh how I hate those socks! I'm afraid this one won't fit since it looks just like jaywalkers. R has been knitting too. She's working on a new pattern for a cowl. It's very pretty and she was really burning up those needles trying to get it finished. She ran out of yarn. Such a sad day indeed. The saddest part is the fact that it was ordered from Knit Picks and we don't know if we can get matching dye lots. They said they would do their best to match it.

Reading is still going on too. I finished "Three Bags Full". It was a little confusing at first, but that might have been because I was reading just one chapter right before I went to bed every night. Once I decided to forget that and get down to business, it was a very fast read and somewhat enjoyable. After talking to a new Ravelry friend, I have decided my next book will be "Captains Courageous". I'm still trying to throw some classics in there with quick reads.

Since I don't have any baby or knitting pictures - yet, I leave you with a Ginger picture. L was loving on her and she looks like she's enjoying it - just a bit.

New Sock Time

I've been neglecting my sock yarn for far too long, so I dug into the stash and pulled this yarn out. RL and the kids gave it to me for Christmas with the strict instructions that I was to knit a pair of socks for me with it. (I normally give away the socks I knit.) I thought it was pretty, but wasn't so sure how it would look once knit up. So, I put it on the old winder and looked at it in that form. Still not convinced I would like it. So it sat there since Christmas. (Little side note: I always pull the yarn from the center when I'm winding it. I thought I did this on both skeins, but look what happened - the pattern is opposite on these socks. Oh well. Makes them a little more unique...and I like unique socks. I'm not into identical twin socks!) They look a little loose on the blockers because I was trying them on my big feet last night as soon as they came off the needles! I really, really like the way they turned out. The fit is great. And I did like the way the colors turned out. I knit these at the same time on two sets of dpns - knit cuff on one pair, knit cuff on other pair, knit leg on one, knit leg on other, etc. It gets a little monotonous, but I don't suffer from Second Sock Syndrome that way.

We're waiting for an order from Knit Picks. I got some yarn for some Christmas present socks. Hmmm, wonder who those could be for???? I also had to order some new dpns. Seems like a knitting needle thief has been stealing my dpns while I sleep. Hmmmm, wonder who that could be?

Hope everybody had a nice Independence Day. Mom and Daddy came over and we had a cook-out and grilled between the rain drops. Watched a movie and then ate some dessert. Then it was off to the fireworks at town square. Nice show, not too many mosquitoes and good company. What more could you ask for? The socks even went with me. It was a little difficult to see them since the lights at town square had been dimmed before the show. Thank goodness for glow bracelets!

I've been reading alot lately too. I finished 'A Deadly Yarn' by Maggie Sefton a few weeks ago. Pretty good. Kind of like the other two books of hers I've read, but still good summer reading. From there it was 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'. Can you believe I had never read that before? How can a homeschooling Mom have her kids read classics she's never read before? So, before I assigned it, I decided to read it. Very good and thought provoking book. Now I'm reading 'Three Bags Full' by Leonie Swann. Interesting book...a book about Ireland, written in German and translated into English. I've been a little slow getting into it, but I'm starting to warm up to it. Whatever will I read next????