The Weary Travelers are Home

My family is home and all in their places. I'm so happy they had a nice trip and a careful one too. The kids enjoyed seeing their grandparents and R was in her element with all the historical stuff at Cades Cove. I think L and R thought their grandparents were trying to kill them with all the walking they did! R just came down stairs and said her legs were still killing her. Hmmm, walking, a new concept! Since she was the official photographer of the trip, I thought I would share some of her pictures with you.

Here's really neat picture of a millstone. The kids said they overheard a conversation between a couple. The guy was saying this was what they used before they made the wheel. Somebody came along and explained what it actually was. People say home schooled kids are dumb - well, my kids knew what it was!
R took her Hallowig for Popo to wear. She's been itching to to get it on him since he lost his hair due to chemo. He cuts quite a stunning figure, doesn't he? Note the lovely 'redneck windchimes' to the left. Those were his birthday present from his cousin.

These motorcycles are the reason L now is considering a career in National Park employment! What a way to get from point A to point B and get paid for it!

This makes me so sorry that I complained about the little red truck in my earlier post. Somehow I think A/C was the least of their worries. I don't think they would have gotten too far on that front wheel!

Tomorrow I'll have to share pictures of the beautiful yarn that they brought back for me as well as some of the roving R brought back to spin. And, now that the camera is back, I can also take pictures of my new socks - hot off the needles. Check back tomorrow, same bat time, same bat channel!

I Am Spoiled Rotten!!!!

It's true, I am! I am spoiled rotten to the core. I am married to a wonderful man who will do anything for me. I have two great kids who are wonderful company and are compassionate people. I am very well taken care of. I have a nice air conditioned house that is slowly being transformed into what we want as a family home. I have a nice automatic car that is a little older than a year. It's a great car - a/c, auto locks, windows, cd player - you name it. Now, you may be asking yourself, "What has this got to do with anything?" I'm going to tell you. Thursday afternoon my wonderful husband and two great kids piled into our one year old car - with air conditioning - and went to Gatlinburg to see my in-laws. (I don't go because I don't travel well at this time. Long story that I'll save for another day - lucky you!) They were gone all afternoon Thursday, all day Friday and will be home sometime in the next hour or two. I have been here taking care of an unappreciative cat, sleeping alone and driving a standard truck with a broken air conditioner. Each of the kids volunteered to stay for the week leading up to the trip. "No, go! I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself!" Ha! No, make that DOUBLE HA! For starters, I have NEVER been alone IN MY LIFE! Well, occasionally I've been home for a few hours alone, but not very long at all. I moved out of my parents house into RLs after we were married. Whenever he went on a business trip, I stayed with Mom and Daddy.

The first day was weird. I was given strict instructions by RL - take it easy, knit, rent some movies, sit in your pajamas all day, read, finish the socks you started, buy yourself some new yarn, etc. Now that sounds like something I could actually do. They hadn't been gone an hour and I had already brought out the vacuum and vacuumed the rug in the kitchen, unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher and cleaned both bathrooms! Yes, even that disgusting one upstairs! Yuck! I brought the recycling bin and trash can up from the street, folded laundry, put it away and went to the library. I did ALL that in a few hours. Then I twiddled my thumbs until it was time to fix something for dinner. I did manage to finish my socks. When I reached for the digital camera so I could share them with you, I realized that spoiled rotten me didn't have the camera - it was with my kids!

The next day was a little better. We won't even discuss how dark this house gets at night and how Psycho - which I've never even seen - goes through your mind while you're alone taking a shower! I got up fairly early, for me, and decided to hit the road. L had asked for a book from a used book store in town so that was first on my agenda. They didn't have it. Borders didn't either. Nope, not even Barnes and Noble. How do I know??? I went to all of those places in the unair-conditioned truck with a window that gets stuck when you try to roll it back up! And doors that need to be locked when you're in town but won't lock on the outside without the key. No, I'm not bitter - don't even say that! R had asked for a pattern from JoAnns and since they were on sale, that was possible. I got that and then headed for the yarn store because RL had told me to get some. I must have been a sight by that time. I was sweating so much and had gone through one soft drink that didn't even begin to touch on the thirst of a hot day. I was soaked through and smelled like it too! Yuck! My hair was ALL over the place from being windblown. I bought some yarn. You knew that already, didn't you? They also had a sale - 40% off quite a bit. I had to get some more. It was all worth it. I came home and ate dinner once I had cooled down and food was again appealing. Falling asleep was much easier after watching John Edwards dodge every question asked, reading a couple of chapters of a pretty good book and being exhausted.

Today was a little better. Still hot, but okay. I got some birthday shopping done for L - who will be 18 in a few weeks! NOT POSSIBLE! Mom met me at Babies R Us to look for a gift for 'Little Miss M.' Now, it's been a long, long time since I've shopped for babies, but when did turtlenecks become fashionable for a three month old???? How many three month olds do you know with necks? My babies had several folds, but no necks. We finally settled on an adorable outfit and I need to wrap it and get it over there in time for the baby shower. By the way, I got to babysit her the other day! Oh, she is just adorable! No, I do NOT want a baby. Surprised myself on that one! I came home and convinced myself to mow the backyard which was in desperate need of it and then back into the shower with Psycho visions! I am clean and eager for that family to get back here!

To top it all off - hasn't the news been horrible this week? First the news of Georgia and Russia, then John Edwards - who was surprised? - Bernie Mac passing away and now the people killed and injured in China. Not a good weekend for news!

I promise pictures as soon as the camera gets back. I'll probably have a gazillion pictures of Gatlinburg that R has taken and maybe even a picture of my FIL wearing a Hallowig! We can only hope...

Katamari Damacy Is Ruining My Life!

A few years back the kids got Katamari Damacy for Christmas. They loved it. When 'We Love Katamari' came out, they wanted it for the following Christmas. A recent afternoon of boredom brought the game downstairs and they have been playing it. In a moment of weakness, they got me to play. Now I have better things to do with my time than go around a pretend Japanese world, pushing a little ball that collects objects. I know I have better things to do. I see those better things to do all over the house. I had just about gotten myself from the clutches of this evil, monotonous game when both of the kids completed the final level. Well, we thought it was the final level. Turns out that there is a final final level where you collect a million roses. A MILLION ROSES! Do you realize how long that takes? FOREVER! I thought I would help them out, so I've been playing that stupid game when the take a break, collecting those stupid roses, and we're only up to a measly 200,000 on L's game and less than that on R's. I thought L was going to have a melt down of the worst kind when the cord came out of the back of the Play Station and he lost 60,000 roses. I would not have blamed the boy at all. It's not a bad game by any stretch of the imagination. No violence. No blood. No nudity. It's just monotonous. Top that off with repetitive Japanese music that we don't understand one word of and you've got a doozy of a game! I don't know if I'll ever like roses again.

See, even Ginger is in on the action! Actually, the sounds do catch her attention and we'll see her watching the game while we play. Somebody send help...is there a Katamari Anonymous?

As for knitting, well, what knitting???? I started a pair of socks a couple of weeks ago and I'm to the heel of the second one - finally. I didn't think I'd ever get there. The sad part about it all is they are your basic generic, just knit, pair of socks and they are taking me forever!

We've been spending some time at Mom and Daddy's lately trying to help them with some computer problems. As a result, we've been spending a great deal of time with Scout and Gus - my feline sister and brother. Gus had an appointment on Monday to get 'tutored', well, that's what we call it. He was also declawed. That poor little booger. Normally he is a brat with a capital B-R-A-T. However, after two surgeries and lots of pain killers and penicillin and they found a parasite during surgery - he has been quite sad. Mom and R took him to the emergency vet last night to have him checked out. He was dehydrated, so they gave him a shot of some sort of fluid. It wasn't an IV, but I don't know exactly what it was. He's on a bland diet for a couple of days. Mom and Daddy are officially broke now. Man, emergency vet medicine must be where the money is. Last I heard he was doing much better. Thank goodness because he gave all of us a scare. The only one not sweating it out was Scout and I'm sure she ever wanted a little brother to begin with.

Time to find that sock and get knitting. The game is off for the moment and maybe I can get some knitting finished if I can get into before I hear that monotonous music again....maybe.

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????