Patch O' Dirt Farm

{this moment}: "You hold me, Mama..."

2012-01-27T07:59:00.000-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Hosted by SouleMama.

(photo credit: Una)

Adventures in dining...

2012-01-26T17:31:00.001-06:00

Since we had to go into Nashville yesterday for an appointment, we made a stop at the world food market. I hadn't been there in about five years, so I got very excited about all the wonderful products I hadn't seen in ages, and was temped to load up my cart. I controlled my impulses, however, and walked out with a mere basket of goodies.

We looked at the trays of octopus and squid, wrinkled our noses at the preserved duck eggs, and laughed at things like "Mannish Water Ram Goat Flavored Soup". We got some lollipops made from goat's milk before leaving, and those were declared delicious.

And now I have been labeled as "gross" by my older kids...all because I had miso soup with tofu and seaweed for breakfast (Gemma liked the soup and tofu, but I guess seaweed must be an acquired taste!)

Yarn Along--mission accomplished!

2012-01-25T07:06:00.001-06:00

I am joining Ginny's Yarn Along over at Small Things, and this week's "finished project" is a wee bit of a cheat, as the buttons aren't actually sewn on yet, but I ran out of time for the shot. Adrian's birthday isn't until the 5th of February anyway. The choice of buttons, which I found on Etsy, was inspired by our family's slight obsession with The Lord of the Rings (the book and the movies). I really was looking for some sort of celtic/horse design that would be reminiscent of Rohan, but came up with nothing of that type (but for a $63 antique collector's item!). So these will have to do, and I am very happy with them. The plain, brown sweater needed something a little flashy.

I actually am reading The Fellowship of the Ring right now. I haven't read it since high school, and I am borrowing Una's well-thumbed copy (um, Una, what happened to pages 85-86...?). It is slow going, as I knit more than read in bed, generally.

My next project is something little and hopefully quick: a slouchy hat for Una. I have a long queue of sweaters I want to knit, but I need to do a few quick projects after doing 6 sweaters in 8 months.

I hope to get a look at what everyone else is doing later today...

Monday Musings--23 January 2012

2012-01-23T11:02:00.002-06:00

Right now...it is nearly 11 a.m., so I really need to move on this! I find it very difficult to do these Monday posts unless I start them on Sunday evening, which I didn't do.

This weekend...was a bit on the dull side, but that's just fine with me. I can barely recall what I did, so routine were my activities. On Friday was Sebastian's name-day, and I had had such a busy day Thursday that it completely slipped my mind. We don't generally celebrate, other than baking some kind of treat, but since I blew it, I had Bret pick up some chocolate ice cream for dessert.

Saturday was nasty and cold and wet. I was so tired that I kind of dragged through my chores and then tried to lie down for a little while on the sofa as Gemma and Dominic napped. I had meant to go to the conference on Spiritual Motherhood at the Chapel of Divine Mercy, but Bret has had so little time to work on the new house now that he is back working full time, so he needed to get out there to work. He spent the morning and part of the afternoon there, and in the late afternoon worked on our taxes.

We went again to the early Mass in Gallatin so as to be home early. Bret's Sundays have become more valuable to him now that his free time is so limited. The kids found various things to do, and I worked on the neckline of Adrian's sweater. Hurray! It is done, all but the buttons, which ought to arrive from an Etsy shop any day now. We went to bed pretty early, which is good, as Gemma needed to be taken to the potty at 11:30, Dominic and Adrian came into our room at I-don't-know-what-time because of a thunderstorm, and Adrian was back again at 4:45 a.m. because of a bad dream.

Some plans for this week: today I have to wash Adrian's sweater, finish a batch of butter, make an appointment with Dominic's ENT because he just days ago developed a humming in one of his ears (he has had ear tubes for a year now) and get some school work done. On Wednesday we have to go into Nashville for a visit to Gemma's and Adrian's urologists. I also need to work on Adrian's secret birthday gift--I think I am about three quarters of the way done with it.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...start another knitting project or two, hopefully later today. I would hate to have to make the trip to and from Nashville without some knitting to take along!

I am grateful for...fairly good health in our family, a nice tax return due to come, the sunshine breaking through the clouds just now, fresh eggs and fresh milk and butter for breakfast.

Some prayer intentions for this week: most especially for my dad, who is overwhelmed with health problems right now, and all tests coming up negative; for my nephew with Asperger's Syndrome, who is having a lot of problems, too, and for my sister, who is pretty worn out trying to deal with them. I am praying that all will go well with our medical appointments and that Dominic's tinnitus will pass.

Something that makes me smile: Gemma telling me, "You cute, Mama!"; her dancing every time she hears music; Una going by herself or with a sibling on nature walks any day that weather permits; the smell of freshly laundered sheets; Fr. George Byers and his posts from Holy Souls Hernitage. And this--Gemma looking at books in her "cozy corner":

You are always welcome to join in with your own Monday Musings...just grab the header image for your post and link back here; if you wish, you can leave a link to your post in the comments here. Have a joyful week!

{this moment}: I would keep them little always...

2012-01-20T06:17:00.002-06:00

{this moment} - "A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember." Hosted by SouleMama.

Yarn Along--the late Christmas sweater

2012-01-18T06:28:00.001-06:00

Well, I am back for Ginny's Wednesday Yarn Along for the first time in a few weeks, and you might expect that I was finally done with this brown Henley, but I am not. Yes, it was meant to be done before Christmas, but we got all hung up with the preparations for the great feast and put it aside to squeeze in a couple of smaller gift projects. And so I am now trying to get it done in time for Adrian's birthday on the 5th of February. I ought to make it, as I am on the second sleeve. I only have to check Etsy for the perfect buttons. I want to get some 3/4" silver ones with a Celtic knot design [Funny story there: I really wanted something reminiscent of Rohan from Lord of the Rings. I spotted a button with a horse and rider on it and said "That's what I need for this sweater!" Turns out the button was a 150 year-old antique collector's item and cost $68! I do know how to pick them, don't I?]

I am really itching to get something else on my needles. I have several projects in mind, but I will not begin until this thing is done!

I am actually reading The Giver right now--youth fiction, which Una read and thought was "okay--sort of creepy". Seems a quick read, and I like to keep abreast of her reading as much as I am able. The gnome book is my own and I am reading it for--ahem--research. I'll say no more for now, as it has to do with an upcoming birthday.

I look forward to seeing what you've been knitting and reading!

Monday Musings--16 January 2012

2012-01-16T12:26:00.001-06:00

Right now...it is noon, and I need to get the kids some lunch. Most of this post was composed at around 6:30 this morning, but we had to get on with things and so I am finishing now. It's been a rough morning, with a lot of bickering and bad attitudes, and a lack of cooperation. I actually did something I have never done before: I told Una to hold down the fort for a few minutes and I put on jacket and muck boots and took a stroll in the brisk, wintery air around the pond. Didn't take the camera, as I was in a hurry to get out. I was gone all of 10 minutes, but it really cleared my head.

This weekend...wasn't too bad. On Friday we had a pretty busy morning baking bread, making butter, making a batch of ice cream and making chocolate sauce for said ice cream. We had gotten most of our week's checklist for school done, so it was a light day, scholastically speaking. Bret replaced the innards of both our toilet tanks, as they were already not working right, but were totally done in by a sediment problem after a heavy rain. Well cap and filter are on the shopping list! And he went into the shop to fill a bulk order from the Etsy shop.

Saturday we did some housecleaning and I worked a bit on Adrian's birthday gift and knit a bit on his sweater. And we watched one of our Horatio Hornblower movies in the evening. I really love those movies...I am an absolute sucker for the old sailing ships...my pulse quickens at the sight of them...

We went to an early Mass in Gallatin yesterday in order to be home early. Now with Bret back at work and also trying to work on the new house, Sundays are extra precious to us. After I made lunch for the kids, I lay down for half an hour, then rose to work on Adrian's gift and chat with my mom on the phone. It sounds like I am putting hours in on the secret gift, but really it is distracted and interrupted work, so very little gets done in a session. I even managed to squeeze in a bit more knitting before going to bed.

Some plans for this week: today I need to make butter and bake something for the kids snacks, maybe some pumpkin bread, as it is fairly quick and easy and freezes well. Generally I have graham crackers and animal crackers on hand for snacks, but as I have pretty much managed to eliminate high fructose corn syrup from the rest of the pantry, I need to stop buying these last items as well.

We have school, naturally, and I really want to push ahead with our history...by the end of this month I want to be done with our study of colonial life and move on to the American Revolution, since I plan to spend several months on it--there are so many historical figures and events to read and learn about, and so many resources.

If I manage to find some time for myself, I would like to...brainstorm for some spring and summer craft ideas for the Etsy shop. Looking at Pinterest boards can sometimes inspire me. I also need to email a friend I haven't heard from lately (hey Cindy...how was your family visit...?)

I am grateful for...so much! I think I need to eliminate this category from the Musings, as my list is always too long and generally the same from week to week. But I am grateful for functional toilets, to say the least...

Some prayer intentions for this week: for peace and joy in this house, and for a spirit of unity here, as I am beyond exasperation with the bickering. I keep telling these boys, You are brothers! You're on the same team, guys! Quit it with the bickering and fighting and tattling!

Something that makes me smile: Rosy cheeks and giggles.

You are welcome to join in with your own Monday Musings! Just grab the header image for your Musings post, kindly link back here, and if you wish you can leave a link to your own post in the comments. Have a great, peaceful week!

{this moment}: it's sticking!

2012-01-13T08:54:00.000-06:00

The stark beauty of winter

2012-01-10T14:32:00.000-06:00

Just a few shots taken on the way to Mass on Sunday. After having experienced nine years of life in Tucson, Arizona, I came to the conclusion that I really am in love with the cycle of the year and the changes that take place with each season. Although I love some seasons more than others, and each season has its pros and cons, I find beauty in every one.

Black and white photography seems to highlight what I love best about winter: the stark contrasts, the play of light and dark, the silhouetted filigree of branches against a white or steely sky...

I don't care much for being cold. And I don't like the mud we have in lieu of snow here in the South. But I love the stark, somber landscape. I will have had my fill of it, however, by the end of next month, and my heart will sing at every evidence of the coming of spring.

We are hanging in there with our first week back at school. I feel much better today after a good night's sleep, and the kids did well with the things they worked on today.

I have been looking into alternative therapies (read: diet, supplements, vitamins, etc.) for Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, which Gemma seems to have. Her doctor suspected it, but he said there wouldn't be any need to do anything much unless she was in a lot of pain. As it stands, she wakes up with pain in her left knee or right ankle now and then, sometimes limps for a little while first thing in the morning, and has a tendency towards rashes and inflamed eyelids (just like a sty now and then).

It is, of course, an auto-immune problem. It seems to have started with the enormous amounts of antibiotics they had to give her back in April when she seemed to have some kind of resistant bug. Within a month of the last antibiotic, the rashes began, and then then the leg pain. I am praying that with a good, healthy lifestyle it will not become degenerative, and that her flare-ups will become very rare. I believe in the power of prayer, and that she could end up free of it one day, if God permits, and so there is always hope.

Strange, but in my mind, the stark beauty of a winter landscape somehow ties in well with discussing Gemma and her health problem. Beauty in a barren landscape; sweetness in suffering--both can be overlooked, but discovered by those who know that the Cross is our salvation, and that it was the shedding of the blood of our God that made our redemption possible.

Anyway...enough musing on profound truths. Back to folding laundry and thinking about dinner...

A conference on Spiritual Motherhood

2012-01-09T13:20:00.000-06:00

Fr. Joseph Aytona, CPM, will be offering a women's conference on the topic of Spiritual Motherhood for priests on Saturday, January 21st, 2012 at the Chapel of Divine Mercy in Auburn, KY. It will run from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. There is no cost, but you must register by January 19th. A pdf for the conference is available here, and to find out more about what Spiritual Motherhood is, please use this link here.

I plan to be there!

Monday Musings--9 January 2012

2012-01-09T08:10:00.001-06:00

Right now...I feel so beat! Gemma woke up at 1:30 a.m., and then again just after 2, after which I just couldn't get back to sleep. When the alarm went off at 5, I thought I would rather die than get out of bed. But here I am. Funny how I could not sleep to save my life last night, and yet if I close my eyes right now for half a minute, I am certain I'd be out cold!

This weekend...was really busy. On Saturday, Bret went up to the KY property to work on the house, and he took Sebastian with him. I made butter, did laundry, bathed little kids and myself, made some pumpkin-cheesecake bars and took down all the tree ornaments and put them away. I made a casserole for dinner. Bret and Sebastian got home at 5 and went to milk the cow. Sebastian barely ate...he was so tired, but the day out in the chilly sunshine did him good: his face was glowing and he looked so healthy (wish I had a photo). He fell asleep right after dinner, before 7 p.m. We all decided to follow suit and turn in a bit earlier than usual.

We went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy yesterday and had a beautiful Mass, with a homily from Fr. Bill Casey, CPM. We all made it to confession, too, which always feels good.

We got home, tidied up and changed clothes, then headed out to my friend April's annual Epiphany Party. At first we thought we were on a rescue mission, as Bret was told that everyone invited had called having to decline the invitation--we were off to help April mess up the house and eat the food, so that all her cooking and cleaning would not be for naught! In the end, another large family arrived as well, and so it still managed to get busy and noisy (3 families with 6 kids apiece). All the kids but Una fell asleep on the way home, and were quickly put to bed.

Some plans for this week: School! We are officially back at it this morning, and the new and revised chore chart is in place as well. I want to get the Christmas boxes up into the attic, try to work on a secret birthday project for Adrian's birthday next month, get one sleeve on his sweater finished and the other started, and, if possible, catch up on some mending.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...start a new, small knitting project. Maybe a slouchy hat for my big girl...

I am grateful for...the fact that once I put Gemma down, the other kids are old enough to leave me alone if I need to lie down for a while today...

Some prayer intentions for this week: Lord, make me a saint...and please help me to not gripe so much about the insignificant little crosses you ask me to take up each day!

Something that make me smile: Gemma giving me multiple kisses; a baby boy smiling heart-meltingly at me during Mass, as he was held by his father and looking back over his shoulder; my Goddaughter's huge, round, rosy cheeks; Gemma running about in socks and a cowboy hat while I try to get her to stand still so that I can dress her. Aren't toddlers a hoot?

Well, it took me half the day to get this published! As always, I welcome you to grab the header image and do your own Monday Musings post; kindly link back here, and if you wish you can leave a link to your own post in the comments section.

Have a wonderful week!

On the twelfth day of Christmas...

2012-01-06T18:34:00.001-06:00

Yes, the big egg was a double yolk!

...we just went on with our rather relaxing week. We had our favorite buttermilk pancakes for breakfast (ah, the hens are laying again, which meant I could use our eggs, our butter and our cultured buttermilk!), the kids spent a lot of time outdoors in the sunshine, and we savored the last of the twelve days (the octave of Christmas, the octaves of St. Stephen, St. John the Divine and the Holy Innocents, and today, the Epiphany).

I spent the better part of the day trying to put a menu plan in place. Why is this so hard?

The tree will be stripped and removed tomorrow. We will lovingly put away our pretty ornaments (we each have our favorites), take the tree outside for the birds, and put the living room furniture back to where it was. I always use a few bags of foil-covered chocolate coins to trim the tree with, and on Epiphany, the last evening before we take down the tree, the kids snip off all the coins and divide them up between themselves as a last Christmas treat and a reminder of the gold brought to the Christ child on this day.

Our Nativity scenes will stay up for a while, perhaps until Candlemas.

I thought you might like our favorite pancake recipe. I was going to put cinnamon and cloves into the batter this morning, thinking of the East, from whence the spices--and the Wise Men--journeyed. But they are equally good without!

Our Favorite Buttermilk Pancakes

2 cups All Purpose flour (I use white whole wheat flour)
2 Tbsp milled golden flax seed (optional)
2Tbsp sugar or Rapadura
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
2 cups cultured buttermilk
2 Tbsp melted butter

Heat your griddle to where a drop of water dances on it!
Sift together the flour, flax seed, sugar, salt and baking soda in a medium to large bowl.
In a smaller bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the eggs. Whisk in the melted butter.
Pour the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture and stir to blend, but do not over-mix.

Grease your griddle or use pan spray. Ladle the batter onto it to make your pancakes.
Makes about 26 pancakes 4" in diameter.

I love toadstools...

2012-01-06T05:30:00.000-06:00

...and I have a thing for gnomes and ladybugs and hedgehogs, too, and all those things that remind me of growing up in Germany. That's why you will come across those things frequently on my blog--and in our shop.

I have been stockpiling these wooden shank buttons whenever I can find them, sanding off the finish, and now I am painting them. My first batch is toadstools, which I first made for Gemma's "Woodland Cardigan Number 2" (Ravelry link here). I received some comments and inquiries on the buttons, so I decided to make some for the shop.

These are 3/4" in diameter and sold in pairs. I have some larger ones I may paint up soon as well, likely to be sold individually.

Let me know what you think!

To see more creativity across the blogosphere and spanning the globe, visit Creative Friday on Natural Suburbia...

Christmas is...for the birds?

2012-01-05T15:26:00.000-06:00

This morning I worked at getting down the boxes into which I store the Christmas decorations. I took down the Christmas cards and put away the Advent wreath and a few of the Christmas things. Tomorrow I will take down the tree, although I hate to do it...I rather love our little Christmas tree. But with school starting on Monday, I figure I should put our living room back in order. I might keep the nativity scenes out until February 2nd (Candlemas).

After three days of bitter cold, I finally heard a bird this morning. The weather being mild and clear, I thought it a good day to do our Christmas for the birds...taking a cue from Ginny, we got together a few sundries and made a fine mess. Gemma and Dominic used chenille sticks to make little rings of Cheerios, and Gemma even discovered on her own that she was able to push the wire through the cranberries. She ate a couple, too. I thought for certain she would spit the first out, but she didn't even make a face and even ate a second one before declining the offer of a third. We rolled pine cones smeared with chunky peanut butter in birdseed, too, and hung these up, and I even made a bird feeder out of an old distilled water jug.Couldn't get hold of the suet, as Bret hasn't been able to make it to the butcher.

So far no bird has yet noticed the fine repast, but I've no doubt they'll find it in time...if it doesn't rain and spoil it all!

Kicking back

2012-01-04T16:04:00.000-06:00

The proof copy of Una's NaNoWriMo novel arrived.

Adrian received a beautiful pop-up book of Our Lady of Guadalupe from his Godmother yesterday, and this morning found a gift from his gnome friend. It was a marzipan and chocolate acorn!

Things have been fairly quiet today. Yesterday the kids were driving me nuts. The weather was bitterly cold (the high was 30 degrees), the kids lacking motivation, and there was far too much whining and arguing going on. Today has been peaceful, largely because I allowed far too much time on the computer for everyone, but I needed to get a few things done, and I couldn't afford to spend all my time and energy breaking up fights and dealing with huffy egos. I managed to work out a bit of stuff for school, which starts up next week again, make butter, slice and freeze bunches of green onions, start two gallons of wine (will likely be ready for drinking after Lent), and spray another coat of varnish on some wooden buttons I have painted for out Etsy shop.

I really had intended to read to the boys, play a game with them, and maybe get a bit of knitting done, but it didn't work out that way. Ah well...I haven't too many plans for tomorrow...

Monday Musings--2 January 2012

2012-01-02T08:08:00.001-06:00

So, I begin the first week of the new year by hitting the "publish" button right after putting in the title. Whoops.

I won't be following my usual format today. I just need to shake things up a bit this week and break from routine--as if I haven't been doing that for the last few weeks anyway!

This weekend was very nice, and we celebrated in our own way. On Saturday Bret was kept busy with various farm and new-home chores, so he was gone most of the day. I managed to work on some hand painted wooden buttons to put in the Etsy shop, and made a banner for New Year's Eve. We enjoyed a nice steak dinner with our own grass-fed beef, roasted potatoes with garlic, rosemary and sea salt, and Brussels sprouts. We had ice cream for dessert and watched the second half of The Two Towers (Extended version). We went to bed at around 10, since we had to go to Mass the next morning. Truth be told, I am not very big on staying up until midnight, since I tend to awaken at 4:30 with or without an alarm clock.

Mass was lovely--we chose Gallatin for the Mass since I needed to get home in a hurry to cook a turkey. It had to be cooked, as it had been given to us just before Christmas. I was a bit nervous about it, but no one contracted food poisoning last night, so I guess it was okay! Bread stuffing, sweet potato casserole, green beans and rolls rounded out the meal...everyone was full enough that a little chocolate served as dessert.

This week I need to get moving on the school planning (so much less fun than playing Wildcraft! with the kids), re-do our chore chart, as things have changed a bit with Bret being back at work, try to put a 4 week menu plan in place (haven't I been planning to do that since the beginning of the school year?) and look for the best prices on what I need to make a special friend for Adrian's birthday next month.

I am working on Adrian's sweater, which may end up as a birthday gift, although I am hoping to be done sooner. I am itching to do another small and satisfying knit, like a hat or cowl or something.

The older kids are out filming in the cold, blustery, January sunshine, Dominic is in the schoolroom by himself, pretending something or other, and Adrian and Gemma are playing together with a pile of stuffed animals. I've been writing this bit-by-bit for the better part of the morning, and it is time to be done with it!

I hope you are having a lovely Christmastide, and I wish you a good week!

A very happy 2012 to you!

2012-01-01T06:48:00.001-06:00

May your year be blessed with peace, good health, everything you need, and some of what you don't but hope for anyway! God bless everyone...

{this moment}: he's got the beat

2011-12-30T09:43:00.000-06:00

(Re-hashing one from earlier this week--apologies!)

Handmade this Christmas

2011-12-30T05:00:00.000-06:00

We didn't make as much as we had intended. I had actually intended for each of the children to receive a sweater or cardigan from me, and I ended up giving them to the kids early, so that they could get the most wear out of them (actually, I am still working on Adrian's). I posted about the other knitted gifts I made on Wednesday.

Each of the kids got one of the cutlasses we sell in our Etsy shop, except for Dominic, who had already received one for his Pirate Birthday back in August.

Bret and I collaborated on Gemma's doll bed. I designed it, basing the design on several I had seen and liked. Bret made it, and I sewed up the European-style bedding, with the big, square, fluffy pillows we had in Germany. The cover was actually made from an old feather bed cover from my grandparents. And the bed perfectly matches the highchair Bret made for Gemma's birthday.

I had wanted to make her favorite baby doll a wardrobe, but alas, I only managed two flannel nightgowns, cut from old, flannel baby blankets.

Anyway, that's it for what we made this Christmas! I already have a few ideas for next Christmas, though...!

For more hand-made goodness, visit Natural Suburbia for Creative Friday!

The "boughten" gifts this Christmas

2011-12-28T20:14:00.000-06:00

Well, yesterday I used my Yarn Along post to show the knitted gifts and books given this Christmas. We did buy some of the gifts, of course, and I really try to consider carefully what each child will enjoy, since first of all the younger kids change their minds about what they want every twelve hours or so, and secondly because they get only a couple of individual gifts per child.

Una got lucky and received an unexpected cd player. My uncle sent it for us, since ours has been kaput for over a year and I really missed listening to my music, not to mention instructional cds and audio books. We are looking at getting one with a cd changer and hooking it up to our very good speakers when our tax return comes in, so I passed this one along to Una, on condition that I may use it when I wish, until we get one for the living room. This girl, who has been saying for years, "Oh, I don't need my own cd player," has been enjoying music immensely lately...I can hear her with her brothers dancing and laughing to the raucous strains of The Gypsy Kings or some modern Irish bands.

She also got some earrings from her favorite online shop, Shealynn's Fairy Shoppe, and my set of Prismacolor pencils, since she uses them more than I do.

Sebastian had no idea what it was he wanted for Christmas, so I assured him that I would find something he would really enjoy. I searched and searched online...and found this great science kit. He has been having such a blast with it, and his siblings love watching him do the experiments.

Ah, here's the mad scientist now...

Gabriel, who is all about space ships and robots and such, received these two gifts, a kit for making a robot from a soda can, and a neat stencil kit for designing robots. We haven't been able to get started on the tin can robot, since soda cans are hard to come by in our home! We might have to go picking along the road to find one.

Adrian was thrilled to get the bongo drums he requested. He really wanted a violin, but that was beyond our budget, and frankly pretty useless without lessons to go with it. So bongos it is, and he is happy as can be. And he got a head-flashlight, since Bret got tired of his being borrowed.

Simple instruments are best for us, who have no means for lessons. Una, Sebastian and I have taken up the penny whistle. Dominic was always asking to use one, but of course all he accomplished was screeching and shrieking, jarring everyone's nerves. I thought a harmonica a good choice for him, and I was right. He just goofs around with it, but manages to sound like he's playing something most of the time. What's more, when he is playing, he is usually fairly still and not chattering--added bonus.

He also got a pair of inexpensive kids' binoculars. They work pretty well and are covered in rubber, making them more or less impervious to the unintentional destructiveness of five year olds.

I always get several gifts that are for all the children together. Usually my mom gives us money to purchase something for the kids, and I use it for board games and maybe a few choice dvds. Two years ago I purchased Orchard, which is a cooperative game, and it was one of the best game purchases I ever made. I try to buy these sorts of games because in my lot of competitive kids, I have a few really sore losers. They argue so much in a day, that I like having them play a game where they have to work together to achieve an end. This year I purchased Wildcraft!, which I must say is absolutely fantastic (very detailed information about the game can be seen with the link). It has the added bonus of teaching the kids all about wild plants that can be used for food or medicine. The one drawback? It goes on a bit too long for younger kids. I think our game lasted nearly an hour and a half, played during Gemma's nap time. It was almost too much for Dominic, who played as a partner with me (the game is only for 2 to 4 players).

Another really great thing I purchased was this set of wonderful fantasy/fairy tale story cubes. I got them from The Fig and Thimble, which is the family Etsy store of Kimberlee, of Pondered In Her Heart. Her son, the multi-talented Josiah, hand-drew the pictures on these wonderful cubes. If you would be so kind, please say a prayer for Josiah as you read this--he is stricken with a bad case of pneumonia right now and is very ill.

The two dvds I purchased were the extended versions of The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. Una had requested The Return of the King for her birthday back in April, so now we have the full Lord of the Rings set...and it is wonderful!

And that wraps it up! I'll be back tomorrow with gifts we made...

Yarn Along--Christmas gift edition

2011-12-28T05:00:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas, everyone! I am joining Ginny for her Yarn Along this week, and thought it would be just the time and place to post about my Christmas knitting and book-giving.

I made two pairs of felted slippers in the last weeks before Christmas using this pattern, one for my little niece and another for one of her brothers. I used a chunky yarn I ordered from eBay a few years back. It's too itchy for much of anything, but fine for slippers, and it felts up nice and thick. I made the soles from scrap suede I had in my stash of leather (I'm a craft pack-rat with WAY too many stashes!).

Those for my nephew were made from two strands of Paton's something-or-other. I found the cute monkey buttons at Wal-Mart. For both pairs I followed the instructions for making the infant size, but working with the bulky yarn and size 10 needles, it was more like a toddler size.

The very last thing I made, finishing it only 3 days before Christmas, was a neck warmer, made from this pattern. I used two strands of Knit Picks City Tweed HW held together and size 10 needles (if I do it again, I will use size 13). The yarn is so soft and lovely, the color and texture nice and masculine.

I have Adrian's Henley to finish, but being a bit burned out from all the last-minute knitting madness, I have given it a break. I hope to get the sleeves started this week.

On to books: I myself am still reading John Holt's How Children Learn. It is an immensely enjoyable book. But I thought I might share with you the books that my kids received for Christmas. I always make a concerted effort trying to find books that each child will enjoy.

Una received Eragon's Guide to Alagaesia. She has Piratology and Egyptology from the same publisher. They are lavishly illustrated, interactive books

I was really excited about this book. Sebastian, feeling the heft of it in its wrapping, was worried. "Did you get me a dictionary?" The book has about 5 hundred pages, but over three hundred of them are full-page illustrations, and Sebastian has been moving through the story rather quickly. The film, done in 3-D and directed by Martin Scorsese, just came out last month, I think.

Gabriel is still not a very strong reader, and therefore it is hard to get him to read willingly. For Christmas I let him off the hook and just got a book with pictures--cross-sections of some of the space ships in the Star Wars movies. He can spend ages pouring over the details.

Dominic, in spite of being teased by his older and more "sophisticated" brothers (meaning that they like robots and Star Wars and ninjas instead of cute, fuzzy animals) still loves Winnie the Pooh. We have the Milne stories, but Dominic, being Dominic, has trouble sitting still for stories without lots of illustrations, so, although I am not a big fan of Disney interpretations of literature, I bought The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.

Adrian loves Gnomes, and we already have this book and this one, so I ordered A Gnome's Christmas for him. He was so excited when he saw it!

The illustrations are every bit as beautiful in this book as in the others.

Gemma received three board books, as she is still a bit tough on the paper variety (she loves them, but isn't too gentle in her page-turning). I seem to have a recollection of having had I Am a Bunny as a child--it seems so familiar to me. Let's Play is another wonderful book by Gyo Fujikawa, filled with delightful illustrations of little ones at play. And I gave her Gerda Mueller's Winter to complete her set of the four seasons.

I'll be finishing off the week with a post tomorrow about the gifts we purchased for the children, and on Friday with what we made, and that should round out my Christmas gift-giving posts. I'm looking forward to seeing what you've been reading and knitting!

Serenity can be hard to find (and a prayer request)...

2011-12-26T20:51:00.000-06:00

Peace is at a premium, especially with kids all jacked up on Christmas candy and no school to create a sense of routine. After all the hustle and rush in the weeks leading up to this beautiful feast, I felt that Christmas should bring with it some sort of release, a great exhalation, and with it, a sense of inner quiet.

It's just not happening. At least not yet.

I snapped these shots on our way to Mass on Christmas morning. This is as close as I can come to serenity...at least for now...

As for the prayer request, Kimberly over at Catholic Family Vignettes has a dear daughter in serious condition in the hospital. I know that your prayers would be appreciated and that they will bear fruit...I am sure she and her family could use some serenity, too...

Monday Musings--26 December 2011

2011-12-26T07:37:00.001-06:00

Right now: 6:30 a.m., the Feast of St. Stephen, protomartyr. Chilly out, looks as though it will be a clear day.

This weekend...we had a wonderful Christmas ("The best ever!", as the kids say every year), although I thought it might kill me. On Saturday I made sure the kids were all bathed and set up my plan for my rather simple Christmas dinner. I mixed up the dry ingredients for an orange-cinnamon coffee cake, which would be our breakfast before Mass on Christmas Day. And I placed the goodies for each of the kids' stockings into individual plastic bags, so as to make filling stockings in the middle of the night somewhat easier. We snacked on a party platter (a gift) and the smoked salmon from the Harry & David delivery (another gift) and watched The Polar Express.

I went to bed at 10:30, but this stupid cough kept me up until 11. Then at 1:30 Dominic woke me having had a nightmare. I got him settled back in bed, and decided that as I was already up, I might as well do the gifts and stockings. I got everything under the tree and the stockings filled, and returned to bed at about 2. Coughing fits prevented me from sleeping more than an hour at a time, and I rose at 5 to put the ham in the slow cooker and have a cup of coffee. Naturally all the kids but for Gemma were up at 6. I woke Gemma at 6:20, and the kids opened their presents. There weren't many, but I think they were pleased with them. I did try to choose carefully.

We went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy. It was very quiet and nice, most folks having decided to either go to Midnight Mass or their parish churches. I think there were 45 folks in the pews (counting our 8) and 10 priests. I had to leave twice on account of coughing fits, and on the ride home, I fell asleep.

We changed clothes at home and I prepared the sweet potatoes and corn casserole. Then the kids opened a few more gifts--items that our local Vietnam Vets had purchased for them, mainly clothing items--and then we had our dinner.

The kids spent the evening playing with their toys and watching Night at the Museum. I spent the evening tidying up the rooms so that I wouldn't have to face the disaster this morning. I turned in at 8:30 and had no strength left to read or knit. I took a dose of cough medicine my mom brought by, took a dose of melatonin, and turned out the light at around 9. I slept relatively well, and didn't cough too much.

Some plans for this week: I plan to write some thank you notes, do a little school planning for when we get back to it, and I plan to read to the kids a lot. I need to get back to Adrian's sweater so that he will get it before winter is over! I also want to sit down with the kids and think of things we can do to pass on some of the goodness we have received this Christmas. Exhaustion and illness are making things hard. I don't really feel motivated to knit, to blog, or to do much of anything right now. Some of that can also be attributed to Post-Christmas Burnout. I did so much for the last month, I think I need to recuperate a bit.

If I find time for myself, I plan to: just take it pretty easy this week!

I am grateful for: the codeine cough syrup mom brought over! I can't take too many 4-hour nights of interrupted sleep without feeling like I am going to lose my mind! I am very, very grateful for all the kindness shown by friends, family, church and community. My kids have learned a great lesson from all of that, and I think it will make them eager to do something for others, too.

Some prayer intentions for this week: We will be keeping all our benefactors in our rosary intentions this week. I am also praying for an end to my cough and Adrian's (the other kids got colds--Adrian and I seem to have weak lungs and ended up with the cough), or at least that it gets no worse before getting better. I am praying for my dad, who is having health problems; and for some other family-related matters.

Something that makes me smile: There were so many moments yesterday! And you know, I didn't take ANY PHOTOS of our Christmas, for the first time ever. I was just so exhausted, all I could do was sit with the kids as they opened their presents. I plan to take a few photos this week of the kids playing with their favorite gifts, just so I have some kind of record of this Christmas.

If you want to join in with your own Musings, grab the header image for your post and link back here, if you would. If you like, you can leave a link to your post in the comments. Have a great week! Merry Christmas!

Checking in...and the true gifts of Christmas...

2011-12-23T11:44:00.000-06:00

I've not posted since Monday, and some dear friends were emailing me to find out if I was alright. As I said on Monday, I have a rotten cough, and it has been keeping me up at night to the point where I can't sit down without the risk of dozing off in my chair. That has made this week a bit difficult, but what had to get done did indeed get done. I wrapped all the gifts; I finished up my baking (only 7 varieties of cookies, down from my usual 10!--must be the German blood in my veins!); my cards are all out, and with the help of Una and Sebastian, the tree got decorated. I still have to do a wee bit of house cleaning, at least in the living room and dining room, and I would like to give the big boys haircuts--although, as my sister says, it won't be the end of the world if it doesn't happen.

Every year since Bret was laid off three years ago, I have anticipated Christmas with some anxiety. I worried about money, and whether we would be able to afford any gifts for the kids. So many expenses come up around this time of year: propane for heating, insurance premiums, auto registration and so forth. And then usually something big and unexpected hits us (this year it was the well pump going out; last year our van died during Advent). I work hard to trust God and not to panic.

Boxes from Harry & David--which Una's Godfather sends us every year

And every year, Christmas turns out to be almost too much, too extravagant. God pours out His generosity through the kindness and thoughtfulness of others. Only two days after the well pump was replaced and I announced to Bret that we would once again have to dip into our meager savings for living expenses, he was rehired by his former employer. It isn't yet 40 hours a week, but it is something!

From family members, neighbors and our church, gifts and food have poured in. My pantry is full; I have the fixings for at least three Christmas dinners, and I wonder if my children will be spoiled by all this abundance, when just weeks ago I was explaining to them that this Christmas might have to be a bit more meager than those in the past.

Last night, as we prayed a rosary for all our benefactors, I made plans to return the favor. We will enjoy the first day of Christmas for ourselves, but we will work to find ways of giving back in what ways we can during the rest of the Christmas season.

And I will renew my resolution to trust in God's tender care.

Una's portraits

2011-12-19T15:07:00.000-06:00

Una loves to dress up her brothers, use my camera and then fiddle about with Picnik. I just had to share some of the stuff she's done. Today she posted photos she took of Dominic dressed first as Little John, and then as Will Scarlet, both of Robin Hood fame. A while back she did the boys up as Civil War soldiers...

Monday Musings--19 December 2011

2011-12-18T21:48:00.002-06:00

Right now...6:55 a.m. The kids are up except for Gemma, and Bret just left for the KY property to meet with his Mennonite crew who will help him get the roof trusses up on the house. I was hoping that when they did this part, I would get to be there and take photos, but the weather delayed things so long that now it is too close to Christmas and I've too much to do to break away...

This weekend...was actually a lot of fun! On Saturday we left the house early and went into Gallatin. We dropped off a load of things at a thrift store, went to pick up a Christmas tree (30% off, it being so close to Christmas) and stopped at a store so that I could pick up a few treats for the stockings. Then we went to a little Christmas party hosted by our local chapter of Vietnam veterans. They had a brilliant Santa Claus there, and he gave each of the kids a present. They sent us home with a lot of goodies, too. At home I worked like crazy to get the stuff put away and put up the tree. I only managed to get the lights on, which by some miracle worked (it seems I have to buy new lights just about every year most of the time) We had pizza for dinner, and in the evening watched Christmas in Connecticut, which we really enjoyed, being fans of old movies.

Yesterday we went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy. It was a lovely Mass, although Dominic was being a beast through most of it. The Seminarians were back from school for their Christmas break, and I was so delighted to see them. At home, I finished a few loose ends on some handmade gifts. I still have a few gifts that need to be made, can you believe it?

Unfortunately, most of us are sick with colds and coughs. I haven't much congestion, but I have a dry cough that is rather uncomfortable. Una has it, Gabe has it, Adrian has it, Dominic and Sebastian seem to have a bit of nasal stuff going on, and so far Bret and Gemma seem to be free from it--at least at the moment.

Some plans for the week: I can't write down my To Do list here--it would take too long! Let's just say that it includes baking, cleaning, gift wrapping, gift making, two haircuts and decorating.

If I can find some time for myself, I would like to...[hysterical laughter] Are you kidding?

I am grateful for...Good weather for getting the trusses up; Bret being back at work; the beauty of the liturgical cycle.

Some special prayer intentions: That these colds are at least nearly gone by Christmas; that I can get done what I need to get done this week; that Bret's health and strength hold up while he works full time and tries to build a house; for the safety of all the men working on the house today; for several special intentions that are on my mind this morning.

Something that makes me smile: Gabriel with "Santa"...he doesn't believe in Santa, but he enjoys pretending that he does. And that makes "Santa" very happy.

Please do feel free to grab the header image if you want to do your own Monday Musings. Link back here, if you would, and if you wish, you can leave a link to your own Musings in the comments. Have a good week!

{this moment}: she's a work of art

2011-12-16T06:00:00.000-06:00

Yarn Along--down to the wire

2011-12-13T21:22:00.001-06:00

I am joining Ginny again this week for her Wednesday Yarn Along.

I finished binding off the bottom of Adrian's Henley last night in bed, after having put it aside for about a week in order to make a couple of pairs of felted slippers which are to be gifts (sorry, can't show you those yet!). I still have to sew the leather soles onto the slippers.

I want to cast on a collar/neck warmer as a gift for another person...and yes, I know how close we are to Christmas, thank you very much.

My rather pathetic local library (pathetic if you have ever lived in a big city and had access to real libraries) never seems to have any of the books I am interested in reading, so my options are either to buy them used on Amazon or eBay, or to wait for them to come to me through the inter-library loan system. I waited three weeks for this one, How Children Learn. I am just barely into it, but already enjoying the writing of a man who finds young children not just entertaining and adorable, but interesting. My mom is sadly of the opinion that babies, toddlers and young children are just sort of blobs until they can have a mature conversation with you. I very happily do not share this distaste, and I find children a wonder at every age so far (I say "so far" because my oldest is only 12).

Are you doing gift-knitting right down to the wire?

Monday Musings--Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2011

2011-12-12T07:38:00.000-06:00

Right now...it is about 6:30, and getting light. Bret is with me, having coffee, as he prepares to meet--finally!--with our Mennonite crew to finish the framing of the new house today. I am hoping to go out there when they put up the roof so that I can take some photos! Gemma is yelling right now, Una is doing her algebra on the computer in the office, and I can see that the light is on in Sebastian and Gabriel's room.

This weekend was...a blur. Not that it was more busy than usual, but I am sooo sleep-deprived. Gemma has got to be our worst sleeper ever, waking almost hourly with shouts and yells. When she goes back to sleep, I frequently do not.

I wish I could recall what I did on Friday, but I can't. On Saturday I made butter and did laundry, painted for a little while, made up a batch of cookie dough for the freezer, and tried to get some gift-knitting done. Bret took the little boys with him for haircuts (our clippers need replacing, and the little boys' hair had grown to where it was more than I could handle). I set up a makeshift easel for Gemma with a big cardboard box and let her paint with some tempera paints. And I bathed kids in the evening.

Yesterday we went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy, and I went to confession. It was a wonderful Mass, and Fr. David Wilton gave a lovely homily on Christian joy. You know how sometimes you go to confession, and then the next homily you hear seems like it is aimed at you? It was one of those...

After Mass we made a stop for groceries, came home, got comfortable, and the kids watched a borrowed video while I made dinner. In the evening we celebrated Advent with the usual sweets and candles and music, and then watched William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles in The Thin Man. We really love old movies here. I finished knitting some Christmas gifts as I watched...

Some plans for this week: I had better make a list, because I am otherwise destined for confusion and scattered energies! School will be limited to math, history and Christmas crafting this week! I have at least 6 or 7 batches of cookie dough to make up in preparation for the mad, last-week-before-Christmas cookie baking madness; I haven't yet mailed a single Christmas card; I have to sew up doll bedding for Gemma's Christmas gift; I have to felt and sew the soles on a couple of pairs of Christmas slippers; I have another hopefully quick gift to knit and another to sew; and then, of course, there is the regular house-cleaning, laundry, butter-making and so forth that must be kept up with.

I am grateful for...clear weather for building; a new well pump; paid work for Bret this week; a good confession; a decent night's sleep last night; the fact that my friend's house didn't burn down last week...

Some prayer intentions for this week: that I can get things done!!! That I can preserve peace and joy in my home while trying to get things done; for the repose of the soul of a friend of my mom's in Germany; for my parents health; for things to progress well and everyone to be safe on the job as they complete the framing of the new house.

Something that makes me smile: When Gemma woke up last night, I didn't hear it at first and Dominic came to get me. I tried to settle her back to sleep, but she kept crying, "I sleep Mama's room!" As I gathered her and her covers, I said, "I hope you will sleep soundly--I don't know what I'll do if you don't keep quiet in my room!" and Dominic said, from his bed, "If she keeps you awake you can bring her to me and I'll take care of her."

And also: our Sunday evenings during Advent:

Am I seeing a pattern here...?

2011-12-09T11:07:00.001-06:00

Just stopping in quickly between multiple loads of laundry and house cleaning. Finally having some dry and sunny weather, albeit cold, after so much rain. Winter here is mud season.

We have water again after three days, and we actually managed to squeeze in showers before going to Mass last night (I am so grateful). It cost us month's worth of living expense money, but we got the new pump in, and it is so nice to be able to flush a toilet again.

The thing is, something BIG always seems to go right around the holidays. Last year we also were without water for a time, but Bret managed to get it fixed. The big thing was our van, which died on us while we were visiting friends. The year before that, it was my oven that went dead on us.

I reread last year's post from December 7th, Meeting Him With Empty Hands, and so much of what I said makes such good sense. But the year goes by, and we forget, and so we are destined to repeat the lesson over and over again.

Humility. Trust. Gratitude. Those seem to be the lessons that I am supposed to be learning as we head into Advent each year. Why am I so obtuse?

Anyway, I am filled, once again, with a sense of how lacking I am in humility, thinking that life should somehow be easier than it is. I am aware of my lack of trust in God, and how much more my prayers are of petition and not thanksgiving.

But now I will give thanks...because I am aware, and perhaps repeating the lesson again this year, it may begin to sink in, and one day I will come to the Feast of the Nativity with a truly humble, trusting and grateful heart, one like Mary's. And with a heart like hers, I can love her Son as she does: perfectly.

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception

2011-12-08T07:14:00.001-06:00

Happy feast-day! We would be on our way to an early Mass this morning, but we are on day 3 of having no water, and the electrician is supposed to be here in an hour or so with a new pump, alleluia! Our water supply for flushing toilets and washing the few dishes I have been using has come from gallon jugs filled at my mom's place, but yesterday Bret had to make a trip to the KY property and filled up a 50-gallon barrel to refill up our cows' stock tank. It has not been fun.

We will have to go to Mass this evening. And my plans for today? Well, if the pump is functional by lunch, I intend to run my dishwasher, which has been full for 3 days, wash a mountain of laundry and take a shower!

I am so sleep-deprived, I am probably capable of doing something really dumb this morning, like putting the milk away in the cabinet or something like that. Gemma had a bad night and for whatever reason could not get into a deep sleep. she kept waking every 45 minutes or so, and yelling, sitting up in bed, calling for me, etc. At about 2 I brought her into my room, where she continued to keep us awake until around 3. After that, I moved to the sofa with my pillow and reheated rice pack. I got up at 6 so as to have some time before the coming of our hero, the electrician, but I feel like my head is full of wool.

One of my favorite Catholic art blogs has this interesting post on a particular painting of the Immaculate Conception, if you are interested.

A Happy Feast of St. Nicholas to you!

2011-12-06T10:22:00.001-06:00

Yesterday was a challenging one--abysmal rain all day, cooped-up kids bickering incessantly, a long to-do list and then, as I was preparing throw in a load of laundry, start the dishwasher and get started on dinner, the water pump went out. No water. It was going to be dark soon, and it was nearly milking time. Bret tested the switch and the fuse, and went to dig in the back of the house to find the wiring. Not fun to think about, working with electricity in a driving rain.

Bret told me to tell Sebastian that he would have to milk Nuala on his own. Now, Sebastian is 10, and he has been going out with Bret to help with the milking for the past few weeks. He had a scare a couple of weeks ago when he forgot to tie Nuala up and she finished her bit of grain and decided to leave the barn, knocking Bret off his stool and onto his back. Sebastian was stricken with self-reproach, and had a hard time going out the next day. Anyway, Sebastian had never milked on his own without Bret standing by, so he was rather pale as he went out, like one on his way to the guillotine. I sent Una out just to give him company and moral support.

Bret tried to fix the problem, but in the end had to call an electrician, who will be coming out here this afternoon (yes, I have been doing everything with some gallon jugs of stored water).

Before bed last night we made ready for the visit of St. Nicholas. The kids cleaned their boots and I made some last minute preparations.

I think my favorite family St. Nicholas tradition has become the writing of the note from St. Nicholas, which has been done for the past three years. Oddly, I really do feel that I am inspired by the Saint to write the things I do. These notes of encouragement usually focus on what the child has been doing well this past year and an area where the child ought to seek to improve. There are little precautionary admonitions and praise for growth in one area or another. I save these so that the children will have them to look through one day.

We left a candle burning to greet St. Nicholas. And, of course, he came.

Monday Musings--5 December 2011

2011-12-05T05:59:00.001-06:00

Right now...it is about 6:00 a.m., and still dark and I can hear the rain now again. The house is quiet. Una is already on the computer in the office working on her algebra, and Gemma has been up for the last half hour. I hear her, too, arguing with Bret now and then (I'm sure he's telling her to go back to sleep--she crawled into bed with him!)

This weekend was...busy. It went by so quickly that I can barely recall what I did! I know that we did a bit of catching up in history on Friday, and worked a bit on some pocket-sized sketchbooks for the Etsy shop.

Saturday I did laundry (it was fair enough weather to hang the laundry out), made butter, baked a couple of loaves of whole wheat bread, got the little ones bathed and myself showered. Bret took Sebastian and Gabriel out to the KY property to work a bit on the house. In the evening we had beef and bean burritos for dinner and watched Singing in the Rain from Netflix. My kids love watching tap dancers...!

Yesterday we went to Mass at the Fathers of Mercy. We didn't stay long after, as I had a few things to pick up in Bowling Green after Mass. Bret drove us out to the building site so I could see how our home is progressing--and it was great. There is still so very much to be done, as it isn't even dried in yet, but it was fun to go around to the exterior window cut-outs and look at the view from each one. When we finally got home, we changed clothes, tidied up a bit, and then spent the evening relaxing and enjoying some Advent sweets. I worked on some Christmas knitting.

Some plans for the week: bills to pay today, some Etsy orders to mail out, laundry to fold, school to teach (in this busy season we tend to focus more on religion, history and art), cookie dough to make up and put in the freezer for some last-minute baking, and of course tonight is the vigil of the Feast of St. Nicholas! I have to get out my little St. Nicholas and the kids all need to clean their boots in preparation. Tonight I will read to them about the kind bishop from this fantastic site. I would love to finish those sketchbooks for the shop and get them listed this week, too. Oh, and the boys really, really need haircuts. Professional haircuts. Oh, yes--and Thursday is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, so we will be going to Mass.

I am grateful for...family, friends, faith. The fact that Dominic's ringworm [UGH!] seems to be improving ~~she writes, scratching herself instinctively~~; slow but steady sales in the Etsy shop; my family's health; countless other blessings from above.

Prayer intentions for this week: favorable test results for my dad, who had an MRI on Friday and who will have an EEG today; for a barber who will be willing to touch Dominic's head and give him a nice cut that will at least minimize his bald patch; for the energy and time to accomplish my gift-making and shop-stocking!

Something that makes me smile: this, um, vehicle parked outside the Big Lots store in Bowling Green...

Please feel free to grab the header image to use for your own Monday Musings post. Link back here, if you would, and if you wish, leave a comment with a link to your post. Have a great week!

{this moment}: the first morning of December

2011-12-02T05:30:00.000-06:00

Gabriel Elias is nine

2011-12-01T21:11:00.001-06:00

My easy-going boy, the baby who was always contented, the toddler who didn't throw his first fit until he was 26 months old, he turned nine yesterday. Although he has developed a wee temper that emerges now and then, he is still the most contented and relaxed of all my children.

He was born at about 1:30 in the morning on the feast of St. Andrew. Rachmaninoff''s Vespers were on the CD player, and a blessed candle burned beside the sleeper sofa in the livingroom, where he was born. The urge to push came upon me and he was out on three. The midwife arrived much later!

We love you, Gabriel. May God grant you every conceivable blessing throughout all your years...

{pretty, happy, funny, real}: 1 December 2011

2011-12-01T08:53:00.001-06:00

I am joining Rosie this week on Like Mother, Like Daughter, for this week's edition of {pretty, happy, funny, real}. It's been a pretty crazy week, but not without some highlights.

{pretty)
This frosty morning was certainly pretty!

{happy}

This guy turned 9 yesterday. He was quite happy about it. (the birthday post will come later today, if I can find a few minutes). Incidentally, my Goddaughter turned 1 yesterday as well!

{funny}
Una was up burning the midnight oil last night, trying to finish her novel for National Novel Writing Month. She had a last-minute technical glitch that deleted the letter "i" from her story--27,468 words long! When I woke up this morning I found this note by the computer:

I think she's {happy}, too! I know I am...

{real}

With all the craziness of preparing for the holidays and trying to keep a decent stock in the Etsy shop, I am also dealing with Dominic having a case of ringworm (a fungal infection, not a parasite) on his scalp. He has a scabby bald spot and is on a toxic medicine--oh, it's driving me nuts to even think about it--and I also have an anti-fungal cream and colloidal silver to put on topically. I hate to admit it, but I am totally grossed out by the very thought! My thoughts are constantly on it, and I feel obsessed. I am also itchy. It is all in my head (not on it), but I check my scalp--and anyone I see scratching--incessantly. I am certain the good Lord is sick of hearing me whine to Him about it, after all, it isn't leprosy, right? Still...ick!

Aren't you glad I didn't photograph it? A bit too real, I think!

For more {pretty, funny, happy, real}, head over to Like Mother, Like Daughter!

Winter warmth from Rhythm of the Home

2011-11-30T20:04:00.001-06:00

I submitted a holiday recipe of mine to Rhythm of the Home for their winter issue, available online today, and it was happily accepted! I'm joining other contributors and offering some goodies from my Etsy shop for a giant giveaway on the ROTH blog, so stop by and take a look!

Yarn Along--and other things

2011-11-30T05:56:00.001-06:00

Sorry about the bloody awful photo, fuzzy as it is, but I realized that my batteries were near death and had to fire off a couple of rapid shots without taking time to get it all in focus!

I am joining Ginny again this week for her Wednesday Yarn Along. Let me just say that if you missed her post from yesterday--Silas with sweet potato all over his happy little face--you missed some great baby photos!

Above is Adrian's Henley sweater, which would likely be done by now if I wasn't working on other stuff for Christmas and for the Etsy shop. Eeek. I haven't even made a Christmas card list yet...

Although the sweater is nothing new, you will note that it is now being knit with my new Harmony interchangeable cable needles from Knit Picks. I am so happy! The only trouble is that the needle sizes aren't marked on the needles, so Bret is going to give me a diamond-point engraving tool so that I can put the sizes on the metal parts. That will prove helpful.

I am still reading this book a few pages per evening and it is making me itchy to try my hand at a little Kool Aid dying (I'm not set up with extra equipment to use exclusively for acid dyes). Luckily, Knit Picks is having a sale that ends today, and I hope to pick up a few skeins of bare merino to play with.

I am back to reading In Conversation with God--a good way to start Advent. The sweet couple people who loaned me the books let me keep them! Truly a gift that will be used for a lifetime. I am also reading from The Liturgical Year. My mother gave me this set years ago; she pre-ordered it from the publisher, and it is truly wonderful.

Okay, enough chatter...let's get back to our Christmas crafting and planning!

Rice-filled heating pads--in the nick of time!

2011-11-29T10:47:00.001-06:00

We had our first snow this morning, just little flurries drifting, and I couldn't capture them with the camera. We are enjoying hot tea, cocoa and chai, spice cookies, candles and these wonderful rice-filled heating pads I made this weekend for each family member.

They were easy to make and are so appreciated by everyone. About half an hour before bedtime I begin putting them in the microwave to heat, but I am thinking that I might just stick the whole lot of them in the oven on low for half an hour and be done with it!

Here is how I made them: For each pack, I used about 3 1/2 lbs. of cheapo rice from a discount grocery. I poured it into a big bowl and added about 1/2 tsp. of lavender essential oil (for Gemma I used about 10 drops of chamomile essential oil and just about 5 of lavender). I stirred it up really well to distribute the oils, and then poured the rice into a sack I had made from and old sheet. I made sure all seams were sewn double to prevent rice-leakage. The finished dimensions were about 7 1/2 by 15". Then I made a second, decorative cover. I guess I could have made them removable and therefore washable, but my main reason was for identification purposes and to give a second layer of protection from leaks.

These take about six minutes on high in the microwave to heat up, but our microwave may or may not heat very well; I've no way of knowing. The packs stay warm under out covers for several hours.

Just for the sake of comparison, I made my husband one with cherry pits. These are much lighter and better for putting on a muscle ache, since they don't feel like sacks of concrete! Two pounds of cherry pits filled up a sack of the same size, took only 3 minutes to heat in the microwave, but was pretty much cooled off in under an hour. Also, they smell amazing! But for warming the bed, we will stick to the rice bags.

Monday Musings--28 November 2011

2011-11-27T20:41:00.001-06:00

Right now...nearly 7:00 a.m. and nasty and rainy...ick
.
This weekend...was lovely. We had a really nice Thanksgiving, the weather having turned mild and breezy just in time for my mom, sister, brother-inn-law, three nephews and one niece to come over. The meal was wonderful and it was just nice to hang out together.

Friday was just a rather lazy day, except that I spent too much time on the laptop looking for some Black Friday deals. Being very low-tech and not into electronics, nothing on my shopping list was on sale! I did get a good bit of knitting on Adrian's sweater done, however.

On Saturday, Bret went to do some work on the new house and dropped Una off at the library. It is rather a disappointing library; of the six or seven history books I asked her to look up, our library had none of them. It's very frustrating for the home schooling mom! I made butter, baked a couple of loaves of whole wheat bread and made two suppers--beef soup for Saturday's dinner and a noodle dish to bring to Mass on Sunday. I spent some time doing a little crafting: since I keep the thermostat down at 55 degrees at night, it can be pretty chilly slipping between the covers, so I made each of the kids a big rice pack/heating pad. I got one from a lovely Canadian artist during a swap some time ago, and I absolutely love using it to warm up the bed! Yes, it took about 20 lbs of rice to make them all, but it was cheap rice and likely genetically modified, so I figure it was the best use for it! Then I trimmed bangs on three boys and bathed a couple little ones and showered myself.

Sunday was chilly and rainy. We went to the Latin Mass in Horse Cave, KY. It isn't at a very good time--noon, and it takes an hour to get there. Gemma usually is pretty much in need of a nap by the time Mass begins, and everyone is ravenous when Mass is over! So we ate our meal in the parish hall and socialized a bit before heading home. At home we celebrated the first Sunday of Advent with our usual lighting of the candle on our [yet undecorated] wreath and ate many cookies while listening to Christmas music. I have such a large selection on CD, but the player is kaput, and so we made do with Pandora Radio on the computer! Afterwards, I played a few rounds of Crazy Eights with Sebastian and Gabriel, and then we finished the evening with two episodes of The Waltons on DVD.

Some plans for the week: Busy week! We have school work to do, I've a birthday cake to bake and gifts to wrap for Gabriel's 9th birthday on Wednesday; I have some more covers to make for the rice pack/heating pads; I need to decorate our wreath before next Sunday, and I ought to get at least one or two batches of cookie dough into the freezer for the Great Christmas Baking Frenzy.

If I can find some time for myself, I would like to...well, it is unlikely that I'll have any time this week, but I would like to play around with some yarn and Kool-Aid dyes...this book is making me crazy!

I am grateful for...a really good sleep last night!

Some special prayer intentions for the week: good weather and smooth sailing so that the new house can be framed this week! An increase in the theological virtues and greater zeal for God and His kingdom during this Advent season (and a few more sales in the Etsy shop so that I can start saving for a new CD player would be very nice, too!).

Something that makes me smile: a little bit of progress

This will be the view from my bedroom...one day!

Please feel free to join in with your own Monday Musings! Just grab the header image for your own post and link back here; if you want, you can leave a link to your post in the comments. Have a great week!

Yarn Along--taking care of business

2011-11-23T05:36:00.001-06:00

Just popping in quickly in the midst of all the Thanksgiving/1st Sunday of Advent preparations to join Ginny for her weekly Yarn Along. I have not time for any non-essential knitting at this point; I had been determined to have Adrian's Henley done by the end of November, but to accomplish that would mean dropping just about everything else in order to knit, and that is never an option. I have decided that the sweaters aren' Christmas gifts anyway (Una and Gemma have already worn theirs), so I may have to put it aside unfinished at some point to work on a little Christmas gift-making (I have bedding for a doll bed to make, and maybe a doll dress and sweater).

I finally finished An Exorcist Tells His Story, and I read some of The Rhythm of the Family (November and December), and I am so excited to have gotten this book from my sister for my birthday! I find I am looking forward to the holidays being over so that I have a bit of time to play! I am also waiting for a special belated birthday package from Knit Picks...something I have been promising to buy myself for almost two years.

I just know that you're knitting for Christmas, and I am hoping that in the midst of the cooking and cleaning, I will find time to stop by and see what you are up to!

If you haven't already, stop by the Yarn Along on Small Things and find some reading and knitting inspiration!

Monday Musings--21 November 2011

2011-11-20T17:37:00.001-06:00

Right now: 7:00...nasty and rainy. I actually awakened briefly in the wee hours to lots of lightening flashing into the room.

This weekend...was very enjoyable, for the most part. On Thursday we had the pleasure of a visit from a priest friend, a Father of Mercy, who came by for a casual dinner and a movie. The kids all enjoy his visits so much, and he is such an easy-going guy that I can really be very relaxed around him. We had the benefit of praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy with him and receiving his blessing for our home and our family.

Friday was a fairly ordinary day, with the usual school work, housework and so forth. I did manage to do a little work on something for the Etsy shop.

On Saturday Bret had to work on the house half a day, taking advantage of fair weather. I had meant to work on my knitting and Etsy things, but ended up cleaning Una's room, which took a couple of hours. I hadn't intended to do so, but I went to put something in her closet and something in me snapped, and I had to put things in proper order. When I was done, her room and closet and dresser drawers were tidy. I know that it probably won't stay that way for long, but the truth is, she has too much stuff in her room. When we are in our new home, her room will be a good bit smaller, and we will have a good storage area upstairs, so she will be able to have bins with the things she only rarely plays with up there. Her room will have less in it to throw about.

Yesterday was gray and rainy. We went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy, and stopped at Wal-Mart for provisions--much of it for Thanksgiving--and then went home. I spent a little time knitting and we watched an Agatha Christie murder mystery from Netflix in the evening.

Some plans for the week: Bret will be working on the house this week, but for Thanksgiving Day. And I will likely do some school with the kids, but it might be less than usual due to Thanksgiving cleaning and cooking. I do want to list a few new things in the Etsy shop, get down a few things for Advent (my wreaths and my Nativity sets), and start getting my various Christmas lists together.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...knit and sew! I still am working on Adrian's sweater, and I actually have a few other smaller gifts I'd like to knit for Christmas. As for sewing, I have doll bedding to make and possibly a doll dress if I can manage it.

I am grateful for...the strength God has given me to deal with things that would normally make a basket case of me! And I am thankful for the kindness and generosity of so many people, from family to people I have never actually met.

Some prayer intentions for this week: for a lovely Thanksgiving for everyone, and especially for those who are in bad situations: those who are ill, or jobless, or lonely, or despairing. I am praying for my mother's friend Inge in Germany, who is dying of cancer and is in terrible pain, unable to eat and no longer getting any relief from morphine. I am praying for my dad, who couldn't make it out here for a visit this Thanksgiving, and who has an appointment with a neurologist this week to look into his constant headache and other symptoms after a fall a long while back. I am praying for the sale of a friend's farm, for good building weather for us, and for a very pregnant mama who may go into labor at any moment!

Something that makes me smile: Toddlerese! Gemma is talking all the time, and the way she says things makes me chuckle.
Bel-bel = belly button
Aye-aye = Adrian
Batise = Sebastian
Sra-beebee = strawberry
Coo-coo = cookie

As always, please feel free to join in with your own musings. Just grab the header image for your post and link back here, if you would. Then, if you would like, you can leave a link to your own post in the comments. Have a lovely week!

Arsenal for kids' colds

2011-11-19T14:47:00.001-06:00

As I am sitting here, I am listening to the odd cough and sneeze coming from a few of my six children. Colds are never pleasant, but they are even less so in a large family, where it seems to take three weeks for a virus to work its way through the ranks--just in time for the one who had it first to pick up the next round of illness and pass it on.

There isn't much you can do. Limit contact with others, keep antibacterial wipes in the van and hand sanitizer in your purse and use them diligently, remind the kids to wash hands, try to limit sugar and get enough vitamin C and D3...but inevitably a germ will infiltrate.

When the colds strike, I have certain things I rely on. I make lots of tea, decaffeinated green tea and black tea, for it's antioxidant properties. When there is a cough involved, I really really love Stash's Ginger Lemon Tea--with a good bit of honey (in the summer I love to make iced tea using green tea and this one together). The combination is a good one, and I also slice peeled ginger root and put it in a jar and cover it with warmed raw honey. Just let it sit for 12 hours and then you can put it in the fridge. A spoonful of this works on coughs at least as well as the cough medicines I have used for the children.

Homemade chicken noodle soup with a good bit of garlic is very good for mucous membranes and loosens the mucous. For myself, I love garlic capsules. I take vitamin C, garlic capsules and zinc at the first onset of a cold, and I can't tell you how many times I've routed the foe with that combination. Just be aware that zinc on an empty stomach can make you violently ill, so take it either with a meal, or just before going to bed.

Unfortunately, it is hard to get those things--other than the vitamin C--into little ones. I do have zinc drops, but they are so very horribly bitter that I can never use a full dose for the children; instead, I try to slip a few drops into undiluted white grape juice (which is sooo sweet!) or in pretty syrupy chocolate milk. Garlic just has to be added to foods.

We use GSE here every day for sterilizing our milking equipment. It doesn't need to be rinsed off and has health benefits, so it is what we use to wipe down cutting boards, counters, baby toys and high chairs. I have put a drop or two in my juice when fighting a cold, and I can't tell you whether or not it has done me good, because I always use multiple things when attacking a cold, but I do know people swear by it.

One unconventional thing I have done for keeping colds at bay is using hydrogen peroxide in the ears. Let it remain in the ear for half a minute or so, then do the other ear. My sister uses this a lot more than I do, and she says it has kept her free from many a developing cold. Just use it at the first sign of a cold; better yet, do it weekly and you will have the added benefit of very clean ear canals (my ENT doctor recommends this for cleaning your ears).

Anyway, here's hoping that you have little need for any of these remedies this winter!

{this moment}: there's a chill now in the morning

2011-11-18T07:13:00.001-06:00

{pretty, happy, funny, real}: 17 November 2011

2011-11-17T05:55:00.001-06:00

I am joining Leila today for the first {pretty, happy, funny, real} in a while. The wet weather and the many projects I am working on has kept me mostly indoors the last couple of days, and I find I am taking fewer photos (poor lighting in this house, and an aversion to flash photography!)

{pretty}

{happy}

{funny}

Dominic: "Mama, do I look like Zorro?"

Me: "Um...uh..."

Dominic: "I mean, if I had the mask..."

{real}

I don't have a photo for {real}today; but if I was in the habit of taking photos of such things, I would have a shot of the mess in my workroom and Gemma's sore little nose. She has the first cold of the cold season, and her little nose was running like a faucet.

For more {pretty, happy, funny, real}, stop by Like Mother, Like Daughter!

Yarn Along--when life gets in the way of knitting

2011-11-16T06:03:00.001-06:00

I'm back with Ginny again for this week's Yarn Along. I never did post a photo of Una's Sweet Peasy, all complete with the buttons. I didn't run them all the way to the bottom because there were too many! I need to learn how to space my button holes when I am adapting a pattern (the original has only two buttons...I like sweaters to leave me the option of covering my tummy!) Anyway, it looks better on Una than on the hanger...

I also finally got around to lengthening the sleeves on Gabriel's hooded tunic. He is a casual type, and this pullover seems right for him. He is barely able to pull himself together for Mass ("Do I have to tuck in my shirt? Can I just wear a polo shirt?"), and he chose the pattern and the yarn ~~so he had better wear it.~~

I've not made much progress on Adrian's Henley...I am just separating for the sleeves now, but so many things are going on...making and ordering Christmas presents, getting things into the Etsy shop for Christmas, planning for Thanksgiving, Advent and Gabriel's birthday in two weeks...

I am very excited at the prospect of buying myself a little belated birthday/early Christmas present, thanks to the generosity of my mom and grandmother...I think I am going to finally break down and buy the Knit Picks Harmony interchangeable cable needles. I have repaired my bamboo 24" cable so many times that I think it is probably only 23.5 inches by now, if that. Every time I have had some money that I could have put aside for needles, I ended up spending it on yarn...even now it is tempting.

No new reading...I really need to finish the two books I am reading currently and start a new chapter book for reading aloud to the kids. I am dying to read the Little House series again, but I want to wait until we get there in our American History. We are only now at Jamestown!

Are you knitting for Christmas? Buying books as gifts? I'll be checking the Yarn Along for inspiration...

48 today

2011-11-15T06:09:00.001-06:00

How quickly life flies,
Born to a series of Goodbyes;
Childhood dashing off with grasping hands
without a care,
adolescence departing, after so much turmoil,
with a mere shrug,
Youth, stars in its eyes, journeying forward on a path
glittering with dreams and desires,
greedy to gather them all.

Goodbye to growing life in the womb
and sleepy nurslings at the breast,
to toddlers with dimpled knees and creased wrists,
to lisping three year-olds in dishtowel capes,
and tanned, long-limbed ten year-olds,
toothy, gappy grins and sparkling eyes filled to the brim with life.

Goodbye to children as they sprint away
to follow their own paths.
We stand back, letting go,
aching for the backward glance, "Goodbye" catching in our throats,
breathless as we realize they've taken our hearts with them.

Goodbye to friends of old, some who just seemed to dissolve in a mist,
others who moved on ahead, and who perhaps wait for us.

Goodbye to grandparents, and parents, too,
Losing sight of them, but not of their footsteps as we follow behind,
moving forward, looking back,
watching the distance stretch behind us.

Moments move into days and days into months, dripping steadily,
drop by drop
without stopping,
until we are full of years
and smiles, and tears.

_____________________________________

I am 48 today, and I am not depressed by it, just a bit melancholy. I really am only very slightly dismayed at the thickening waistline, the lines in my face, the gray hair, all things on me surrendering to gravity. I actually have a much harder time with my children's birthdays, as my inability to stop them from growing up and moving on is very hard for me to bear.

I waited so long--too long--to have my first child, and late it was that I discovered that it was having children, watching them unfold and blossom, that has brought me the most joy, the greatest sense of purpose and the deepest understanding of our Creator's self-sacrificial love for us. It is hard saying goodbye to this phase of life, which began too late and is over too soon. There will be no more births for me, no nursing babies, and soon, no more toddlers (oh, how I love toddlers, in spite of all their willfulness!).

Still, I am trying to enjoy this phase of life, too--being able to spend more time doing things with the older children, having a bit more free time as they take over some of the chores, enjoying conversations with them and marveling at the brilliance of their creativity and astuteness of their observations.

Life is good. God is good. I am glad to be here. Thank you to all those who are making the journey, in spite of all its difficulties, an overall pleasant one. What would a journey be without fellow travelers?

Monday Musings--14 November 2011

2011-11-13T19:36:00.001-06:00

Right now...it is nearly 7 a.m. and the day looks sunny and breezy. I wrote the better part of this post last night, and spent my early-morning, post-prayer and reading time responding to a few emails...

This weekend...was not too bad, but all rather mundane. Saturday was spent in Bowling Green running errands and shopping, doing a bit of house-cleaning and bathing kids. In the evening we watched an old movie from Netflix and ate ice cream. I also managed to sew up two little flannel nightgowns for Gemma's baby doll, one of her Christmas presents.

Yesterday we went to Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy. I got to confession with the kids and Fr. Tony Stevens gave a very good homily. At home the kids payed in the wind, and my! it was really, really windy!

Some plans for this week: I have to coordinate with my sister on our meal plan for Thanksgiving. I'm guessing that will take all of ten minutes, as we always seem to have pretty much the same menu with few variations from one year to the next. I need to do some cleaning--somewhat more than the mere surface tidying up. I need to wipe down the kitchen cabinets, get the cobwebs out of the corners and mop the floors!

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...work on Adrian's sweater, finish Gabriel's, and make up a few little things for the Etsy shop (yes, I am trying to get what I can into the shop before Christmas!)

I am grateful for...too much to put here. All the little things and many big things, too.

Some prayer intentions for this week: for the health of my parents; for the repose of the soul of our good neighbor, Gary; for the sale of my dear friend's farm, if it be according to God's will; for the special intentions of a blog-friend; for the continued health of my family; for our house-building project to move along smoothly.

Something that makes me smile: Patch O' Dirt cart-sailing (I told you it was windy!)

As always, I invite you to post your own Monday Musings. Just grab the header image for your post and link back here. You can leave a link to your post in the comments, if you wish.

Have a good week!

{this moment}: the best of times

2011-11-11T05:30:00.000-06:00

Yarn Along: Last cast-on for my personal best...

2011-11-09T06:19:00.000-06:00

Back with Ginny this week for another wonderful Yarn Along.
I have put the buttons on Una's Sweet Peasy, but have not yet taken any photos of it for Ravelry.
I have a sleeve lengthened on Gabriel's hooded tunic to match his right arm; now I am working on matching the other sleeve to his left.

And I have just started working on Adrian's Henley, which is in Knit Picks Swish, in the color Truffle. He finds most yarns itchy, but thinks this one soft enough, and the color matches his chocolatey eyes beautifully. I would be further along if I hadn't noticed at one point that I had missed an increase somewhere, and I went back six rows or so before finding it. It took me longer to carefully undo those 6 rows than it would have taken to knit 18. Anyway, it is the last of the six fall/winter sweaters I wanted to have done before Christmas. I say this knowing that I have a stash of yarn and a long line of queued up patterns I still want to knit for the kids...

My mindless, "take anywhere" knitting is Una's leg warmers. I grab this bag whenever I am at a place in my other knitting where I have to actually engage my brain, and I need something I can do in the van with incessant interruptions.

I haven't abandoned reading An Exorcist Tells His Story; I just picked up this book for a little lighter reading in between. I like it very much, but it is just like reading Amanda's blog, just without the knitting.

What are you knitting and reading this week? Find all the inspiration you need on Ginny's weekly Yarn Along at Small Things!

Monday Musings--7 November 2011

2011-11-07T11:21:00.001-06:00

I started this post early this morning, but as so often happens, I was interrupted and couldn't bet back to it until nearly lunch time!

Right now...it is 5:45 and we are experiencing the downside of going off Daylight Savings Time: all my kids are up already, and I am guessing that by 6:30 they will all be asking when breakfast will be ready! Ugh...it is just not worth it. I don't like this time-change thing at all...

This weekend...was quite lovely. I had a visit on Saturday morning from my dear friend whom I'd not seen in ages, and then another friend came by and spent some time with us. It was really nice to have some adult company for the first time in many moons.

Yesterday we went to an early Mass (since we were all up at the crack of dawn with the time change) and chatted in the sunshine and whirling autumn leaves with friends for a long time afterwards. At home I changed clothes and attacked my knitting basket. Yes, I spent about 5 hours knitting yesterday...with some of the knitters I know, that would have been enough time to finish a project, but I do not knit quickly, and I just managed to work a bit on Gabriel's sweater (nearly done) and begin work on Adrian's.

Some plans for this week: Let's see; school, naturally, and I have to start thinking about Thanksgiving and Advent. Later today I need to do the dreaded checkbook. I need to get online and look around for some quality things I can get for the kids for Christmas. We generally do not over-do it with gifts (who can afford to with a large family?), and several gifts are things like board games which are shared, but this year I am stumped when it comes to the individual gifts.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...work on painting three little wooden families I have for the Etsy shop, case in some of my pocket-sized watercolor sketchbooks and work on Adrian's sweater.

Special prayer intentions for this week: For two Matthews (my nephew, and the Matthew Ginny has requested prayers for), for Bret's health and strength to hold out as he begins the work of framing the house towards the end of the week (he is getting a cortisone shot in his shoulder today, as it has been giving him problems); for the weather to be wonderful throughout November, so that there will be no delays in building; for safe travel to Chicago for a friend and her family; for the faithful departed in this month of the Holy Souls.

Something that makes me smile: a leaf-fight in the autumn sunshine after Mass

As always, you are welcome to join in the Monday Musings...just grab the header image for your own post and link back here. You can leave a link to your own Musings in the comments if you want. Have a great week!

If you haven't read this already...

2011-11-05T06:14:00.002-05:00

...please do. It is one of the best posts Elizabeth Foss has written, and although I am not yet a mother to young adults, time passes so quickly as to leave me breathless in its wake, and my children will be grown before long.
What I'm Never Going to Tell You

{this moment}: he's not happy

2011-11-04T05:30:00.000-05:00

Doing vs Being

2011-11-03T17:56:00.000-05:00

We had a long "Indian Summer", but autumn is truly here. As I write this, I am glancing out the window at steely skies, the yellowed leaves on our maples shivering in the chill breeze. November has come, like a somber curtain lowered upon what was only days ago a stage ablaze with color.

Yesterday, before dinner, we all took a walk up the hill to the nearby cemetery to pray for the souls of the faithful departed on the Feast of All Souls. The weather was cool, but not too bad.

It is a small cemetery, but it does have some Civil War veterans buried there. And it has a wonderful oak tree (nothing like the Remarkable Trees of Virginia Ginny and her crew have been visiting). But it is old and lovely. And today, waking as I did to rain and wind and slate-colored clouds, I was so glad that we had taken this brief walk together.

You see, I have been indoors too much as of late. I am knitting and making things for Christmas and for the Etsy shop. I am trying to sort out too much clothing. It seems that I have become very poor at organization, and feel like I am not keeping up with anything but the laundry. I feel we haven't done as much reading as we ought (I haven't read a book aloud to the kids in ages). I have ironing piled up. I have fabric purchased for clothing I haven't yet sewn. I have a floor that needs mopping and an oven that needs cleaning, and I still have knitting and Etsy stuff to do. I am overwhelmed and just hanging on to the thought that things will slow down after Christmas.

But between now and then, there is Gabe's birthday, Thanksgiving, Advent and then the joyful--if I can keep it so and not permit stress to overwhelm me--feast of our Lord's birth.

I need to rethink what I'm doing around here. I don't need another "To Do" list; I have too many of those. What I need is a "Not To Do" list, or rather, I need to start thinking of ways to simplify. I go nuts making things in an effort to save money, but can I take some Etsy earnings and buy a few things? There is one of my problems. I love handmade stuff, and rather than buying it, I think, "I can do that!", and I go nuts trying to do it all. I like to bake at Christmas, but do I really need to bake 10 varieties of fancy cookies? Wouldn't I rather read to the kids, or play cards with them, or bundle up and take a nature walk with them, or just sit and knit without feeling like I am running a decathlon? Obviously, yes.

So, I am going to make a To Do list...and then I am going to begin crossing things off of it. Maybe if I can get by doing a little less, I can "be" a little more.

Yarn Along--going like gangbusters

2011-11-02T05:59:00.000-05:00

I am joining Ginny today for her weekly Yarn Along, and I am so excited to finally have something finished to show!

Isn't it lovely? It is Gemma's, and I can't wait to put her into it. I needle felted the mushrooms and painted the wooden buttons, and I think that in the spring when I knit myself a cardigan, it will be the adult version of this one. My Ravelry notes are here.

And here is Una's Sweet Peasy. I still need to find the perfect buttons. I am thinking shell buttons. It actually looks much better and has a nicer shape on Una, who had to try it on (no secret sweaters for Christmas--the kids all know what they are getting sweater-wise!)

I have also ripped back the first sleeve of the sweater I made for Gabe, thought would be too small, decided to make for Adrian, but Adrian found it scratchy so I tried it on Gabe and found it would fit if I lengthened the sleeves. Did you follow that? Good, because, it is a lot more confusing in print that it is when I explain it verbally for some reason!

And I need to cast on my last Christmas sweater, a Henley in brown, very soft Swish wool from Knit Picks. Of all my brown-eyed children, Adrian's eyes are the richest sable brown. I think it will suit him well.

Reading...well, with all this knitting, I am not doing much reading! I am finishing up the last few chapters of The Shadow of the Bear, which Una is quite in love with and which I find a very good yarn, if not a literary masterpiece. It is interesting enough to keep me reading in the evening when usually my eyes close in about 15 minutes after climbing into bed.

I look forward to seeing what you have been knitting and reading, too!

Monday Musings--31 October

2011-10-31T06:41:00.000-05:00

Right now...it is about 5 a.m. I am up early, as Gemma was in our room and went into a pretty fitful sleep this morning. Like her brother Adrian, she can get very vocal and active when she is dreaming, and me, I have trouble getting back to sleep. So 4:15 was wake-up time this morning. Not a good start for Monday...I tend to function poorly at my age on only 5 hours of sleep.

This weekend...was busy in a good way, but not without a few rough spots. My mom has a pretty bad infection under her gums, and on Saturday she was feeling miserable and unable to drive herself to the dentist, who agreed to see her outside of office hours. She was feeling nauseated and dizzy and short of breath, and we had no way of knowing whether it was due to the infection or a reaction to the antibiotic. She was already doing much better yesterday, thank God, but it had us concerned, to say the least.

On Saturday morning I showered and packaged up a few things for the post office, answered some email and put a pot of soup on to simmer all day. I made butter and got everyone bathed, since we were going to the vigil Mass. After Mass, we grabbed a couple of pizzas and went home. Before bed, Una sat on my bed and read to me from the most recent pages of the story she is writing, and I finished weaving in the ends on her cardigan.

Sundays when we are home are usually so fruitful, and yesterday certainly was. Since there is no school and no housekeeping, I get a lot of crafting done. I washed and blocked Una's cardigan, and then began the big job of making Gemma a feather comforter. Bret and I have had this German comforter (really just a big sack of feathers) travelling around with us for the last 26 years, since we found it in the hayloft of an abandoned barn in Germany, when we were on one of our little motorcycle jaunts. He managed to squeeze all the air out of it and get the thing onto his bike.

. Gemma will no longer use a sleep-sack, and her blankets were woefully thin, and I turn the heat way down low at night to save money on propane. She is still in a crib, and will likely remain there for a while longer, as the room currently has little space for a twin bed. Anyway, I bought some very tightly woven muslin, washed it in hot water and this morning cut it to size, double-stitched it all around, stuffed it with feathers and then stitched it into twelve puffy sections. It is perfect, and I no longer worry about Gemma being cold at night! Now I just need to make a pretty cover for it, with a matching pillowcase...

I also worked on something for the Etsy shop, baked cupcakes for today, ripped back one of the too-short sleeves on Gabriel's sweater and got it onto needles and wound up a couple of skeins of Knit Picks "Swish" in Truffle, a nice, rich brown, for Adrian's sweater-to-be. I think I may knit him a Henley like Sebastian's--it was a nice pattern to work with and knit up quickly.

Some plans for this week: well, we aren't going to have much of a Halloween celebration this year. First off, I am just really busy with Christmas-related stuff and the Etsy shop, and secondly, I have never felt very comfortable with Halloween. I waver back and forth on the topic, giving in to the children. We don't Trick-Or-Treat, and gruesome costumes are out of the question, but I just don't like this whole celebration of what's dark and creepy. Kids--at least mine, and me too as a child--love to be spooked, and Halloween just seems to have more appeal to the kids than All Saints Day. But I really need to stop wavering and make a final decision about it.

Besides Halloween today, we have Mass for All Saints Day tomorrow, a visit to our very local cemetery (I can see it from my workroom windows) for All Souls Day, and, God willing, the beginning of framing on the KY house.

If i find some time for myself, I want to...well, in all fairness, I consider all the time I get to knit or work on Etsy creations, time taken for myself, and I think I have been doing a lot of that lately. Being creative never feels like work to me; it is always an outlet and a pleasure.

I am grateful for...warm feather beds, sweet friends I have never met, my mother feeling better.

Some prayer intentions for this week: for my family's health, for everyone's safety on the framing of the house, and that all goes well and quickly; for Max to return (our farm dog has been gone for three days now...I don't feel particularly hopeful, but just maybe...); for a special intention so close to my heart, I cannot put down the words here...

Something that makes me smile: Gemma looking at this beloved book (I think I had a copy of it as a child) and pointing to each naughty baby, saying, "Dis baby naughty, naughty, naughty!" over and over again;
her running about chasing feathers on the breeze yesterday as we filled her comforter outside (I felt like Frau Holle!); Dominic and Gemma jostling one another for positions on my lap during rosary (oh, how I will miss this when they are too big!); Una's passion for reading and writing, and this, passed on to by Mary this morning (Thank you, Mary!):

As always, please feel free to join in with your own Musings. You can grab the header image for your post and link back here; if you wish, leave a comment with a link to your post. I wish you a happy, productive week!

Making things

2011-10-28T07:33:00.000-05:00

This week, between school, household chores and errands, I have been laboring for our Etsy shop to stock the imaginary shelves (um, a big cardboard box in my workroom). My workroom is getting a bit crazy between the Etsy creations and the stuff I am trying to get done for Halloween, Gabriel's birthday, Thanksgiving and Christmas...actually, it is a bit of a disaster right now. But back to the new items:

Watercolor sketchbooks (I have a stack sewn up and ready for covers):

Stitch Markers:

And I finally got these note cards printed up:

Have you made something this week? For a little inspiration, stop by Creative Friday on Natural Suburbia!

{this moment}: anticipation

2011-10-28T06:21:00.000-05:00

Yarn Along--one done, one nearly done

2011-10-26T06:28:00.000-05:00

Here I am, taking part in Ginny's Yarn Along again this week, but finally with a finished--well, very nearly finished--cardigan to show! I'll be looking for some small wooden buttons today, and I am going to needle-felt some mushrooms onto it, as I did with last year's autumn/winter cardigan (yes, I have a thing for mushrooms. And hedgehogs, and gnomes. So sue me...)

I have the stitches all picked up for the button band on Una's Sweet Peasy as well, but I need to sit with a notepad and work out the holes, since I want the buttons to go all the way down. What is it with cardigans nowadays? Why only two or three buttons? I mean, that is fine for a summer sweater, but I really prefer my tummy to get some coverage as well!

I still have An Exorcist Tells His Story on the bedside, and I read a bit as I am able. But I am back to perusing Books Children Love for some ideas to get the boys reading more. Sebastian is not so difficult, but Gabriel is one of those "I Hate Reading" kids. I'm not too worried, as Una, who is a speed-reader and consumes books like popcorn, once said that, too.

I am also trying to read Una's new favorite book (well, after the Lord of the Rings trilogy), The Shadow of the Bear. It is youth fiction, but as I was in NYC at the same age as Blanche, one of the characters, I thought I would give it a read.

Hopefully I will be done with Una's cardigan by the next Yarn Along and casting on my last cardigan of six I am knitting for Christmas. If I can get that done quickly, I might have a couple of weeks left over for hats and scarves!

Monday Musings--24 October 2011

2011-10-24T06:11:00.000-05:00

Right now...it is 5:15. I have been up since 4:10 a.m., when Gemma awoke the second time needing a heating pad for her ankles. For three nights now she has awakened a couple of times per night with cramping in her ankles. Likely "growing pains", but I have never had a child so young suffer them. She has a check-up on Wednesday, so we shall see. In the meantime, my brain is turning to mush...

This weekend...was quite active. On Friday I cleaned windows for the first time since early spring, and now I am obsessed with keeping them clean. Really, I need a holster to keep the glass cleaner on me. Then I finished my watercolor leaves and put them up. I still have a few autumn crafts left to do, and with luck I will get them done before winter. I also cut binder's board to size for the watercolor sketchbooks I am making for the Etsy shop

On Saturday I spent the morning making butter, cleaning out a closet and cooking. I made pulled pork sandwiches and cole slaw for dinner, and then made chili to put in the crock pot for Sunday. It's really nice to come home after Mass with the house smelling warm and spicy. And I finished a sleeve on Gemma's cardigan.

Yesterday we went to the Chapel of Divine Mercy for Mass, and all of us made it to confession. Gemma was quite good and didn't need to be taken out at all (she is entering the Temperamental Twos and can sometimes be quite vocal), so that was very nice. At home I made a double batch of buttermilk cornbread to go with the chili, and I finished knitting Gemma's cardigan! Just need to weave in loose ends, sew on buttons (if I have some!), figure out how to deal with two button holes I don't want and then block it.

Some plans for this week: I still have Una's Christmas cardigans near completion and Gabe's to lengthen the sleeves on, and I hope to have them finished by the end of the week, although that may be a little overly optimistic. I also have things to make for the Etsy shop (the watercolor sketchbooks among them). I want to clean the woodwork in the house and have Bret dust all the ceiling fans (he takes that on as his bi-annual job). And I need to come up with the clues to our annual Halloween Treasure Hunt.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...finish some half-done autumn crafts I have in my workroom.

I am grateful for...friends far and near; the truly glorious autumn weather we have been enjoying; the sacrament of confession; home schooling.

Some special prayer intentions for this week: For Jonathan; for Bret's health and strength as the framing of the new Patch O' Dirt Farm begins at the end of this month; for a few small jobs to come in for Bret, things he can squeeze in with the building of the house; for Ginny and Silas.

Something that makes me smile: Dominic teasing one of our child-friendly priests after Mass: "Hey, Faddah, why are you wearing a dress?" (honestly, this kid had never seen a priest in anything but a cassock until we had a few over for dinner!). And this--excuse the lower half unencumbered by clothing. It is so hard to keep clothes on this one; every time I turn my back, she takes something off!) :

Please feel free to grab the header image for your own Monday Musings. Link back here, if you would, and if you wish, leave a comment here so that others can find your post. Have a blessed week!

Water-colored Autum Leaves

2011-10-21T14:17:00.001-05:00

This was a fun project. I didn't feel up to dipping leaves in beeswax again this year, so I went looking for other ways to decorate for the season. I had such success with the water-colors on coffee filters project last year, that I decided to do a variation on that. Although most of this would be fairly easy for the kids to do (other than the cutting out), my own kids were not involved in it this time around.

I began with spreading out a number of coffee filters on a plastic tablecloth in my workroom. With a spray bottle, I wet them all down with water.

I have really come to love these liquid water colors I ordered a couple of years ago. The colors are quite vivid, and they are so much easier to work with than the pan or tube colors for things like this. I just took the bottles in yellow, green, orange, red and brown and proceeded to dribble and drop paint onto the wet coffee filters.

I'm afraid the colors look all wonky because of the blue tablecloth. Next time I do something like this for the blog I will try to remember to use white! Anyway, I downloaded and printed out an autumn leaf template I found on the internet, and cut out the leaves. I pinned a leaf to a stack of several filters, and cut them out.

When I had a nice pile of each type of leaf, I took a brown Sharpie marker and drew the simple veins on each leaf. Then I threaded them onto sturdy button thread and put them up in a couple of places. I left a few unstrung to tape with double-stick tape to our french doors.

For more creative inspiration, why not stop by Natural Suburbia for Creative Friday?

{this moment}: rainbow

2011-10-21T06:11:00.000-05:00

Yarn Along--just let me knit...

2011-10-19T06:19:00.000-05:00

I am back with Ginny for another weekly Yarn Along. Poking about the "blogosphere" and seeing what everyone is knitting and reading has really become one of the joys of my week. Thanks, Ginny!

After finishing those great little slippers for Gemma last week, I was sorely tempted to cast on another pair for someone, anyone, just because they were so satisfying to knit and put together. But I resisted, and made myself move forward on the two cardigans--Una's Sweet Peasy and Gemma's little Mini Chic. I only have the button bands to do on Una's, and have been putting it off, as picking up stitches is almost as tedious to me as seaming (I wonder if I can ever be tempted to knit a seamed sweater again...) I am about to begin the sleeves on Gemma's (I'll do full length sleeves for winter), but I botched the button band by following the instructions. For a 2T, the buttons shouldn't be so close together, and I noted that too late, so I will have to sew up two of them and then try to cover them, maybe with some needle-felted do-dads.

I am hoping to get these done by the end of the month; if I can, I have one pullover the sleeves of which I must lengthen for Gabriel, and then one more pullover to knit for Adrian, and I will have accomplished my goal of 6 sweaters in 6 months!

I am still reading An Exorcist Tells His Story. I read very little in a day--I am presently consumed with knitting). It is interesting, and not a little creepy.

Join the knitting and reading bonanza on Ginny's Yarn Along and find loads of inspiration!

Monday Musings--17 October 2011

2011-10-17T08:15:00.000-05:00

Right now...I'm in a bit of a rush. It is seven, and hence way too late for me to be sitting here on a Monday morning, but I got all caught up looking at the fall sale items on the Land's End site before realizing that there is really nothing there I need. It's just that "60% Off" line that got me looking...

This weekend was... sort of busy, but not particularly interesting, and with all we've been doing lately, I am glad for the break. On Saturday I spent the better part of the day finalizing the Changing of the Wardrobe. I still have to make everyone try on winter jackets and make sure they all fit. The one good thing about this dreaded task is that I get rid of a lot of stuff.

I got a little knitting done, made butter and took an empire-waisted dress that I didn't like and Una didn't fit, and turned it into a skirt I think she actually will wear. And I ordered two bushels of apples from the food co-op. Una spent the night at the home of friends. I miss her presence this morning.

Some plans for this week: This month is going by too quickly! I really need to do windows today, as the weather is getting much cooler this week, and it may rain tomorrow. Bret is going up to the KY property to bale some hay before it rains.

I have my watercolor sketchbooks to work on for the Etsy shop and a list of other things I want to make for the shop before Thanksgiving, I have costumes to help the kids with--I don't know that I am up to a "Halloween Party" this year (too much to do!), but the kids like to dress up, play some games and have a treasure hunt for their candy. I think that I am stuck with that, having established a precedent for the past few years. I also have my checkbook to do...yech. Being a grown-up kind of stinks sometimes...

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...try to make a couple of fall/winter dresses for Gemma. She is rather short on clothing, especially long-sleeved stuff. And I need to sit down with a calender and notebook and start making some holiday plans and lists.

I am grateful for...the return of health to a friend's son; the long stretch of beautiful "Indian Summer" we have enjoyed; for children who are understanding and easy to please (usually!)

Some prayer intentions for this week: for Bret to be able to get some hay in (square bales are back-breaking to load, and the boy's aren't old enough to lift them yet); for my friend who just had a plumbing incident and has to deal with water damage and insurance adjusters today; for the strength, organization and determination to do what I have to do this week and all weeks before Christmas.

Something that makes me smile: playing with a tarp on a windy day!

As always, you are more than welcome to join in with your own Monday Musings. Just grab the header image and if you wish, you can leave a comment with a link to your post. Have a great week!

{this moment}: irrepressible exhuberance

2011-10-14T05:00:00.000-05:00

What in the world...?

2011-10-13T16:34:00.000-05:00

For obvious reasons, my kids don't tell me everything.

For obvious reasons, I have learned not to ask too many questions.

Because she loves us

2011-10-13T07:10:00.000-05:00

Today is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. It is a wonderful thing that she came in person to speak to us through these three young children, but the message of Fatima is not to be taken lightly.

The little ones will be watching this sometime today, and this evening, we have this disc rented from Netflix. I hope to make a dessert as well to celebrate the day.

The year before last, I put this image here for you to download and print, and I am putting it here once again. It prints out beautifully at 5"x7" on glossy photo paper, and looks very nice matted and framed in a child's room! Have a blessed feast day.

Yarn Along--full steam ahead

2011-10-12T06:17:00.002-05:00

I'm back again for Ginny's weekly Yarn Along, with a finished project to show, albeit a little one:

These were so much fun to make, and they were really quick, too! Ginny has made them, Nicole has made them, and I thought they would be a great first-time-felting project. Gemma really needed a pair of slippers, as the school room floor is like a skating rink in winter (linoleum over concrete--it used to be the carport!), and although these are rather bulky looking, they will be warm. The yarn is from my stash, stuff I ordered for soakers, but found too scratchy. Anyway, they were so quick and such fun, I can't wait to do more!

My other projects are moving more slowly. Una's Sweet Peasy is nearing completion. I just have the bottom border to do, and then it is (ick) picking up stitches for the button bands.

You can see the bit of progress on Gemma's Mini Chic. I have finally separated the sleeves, so things ought to move along more quickly now. And the Noro Kureyon? That's the start of a pair of legwarmers I cast on in desperation. We were leaving the house, and I needed some mindless van-knitting to do, and all of my projects-in-progress were at crucial points. So, being unable to abide drives without knitting, I was literally spinning this ball on my yarn-winder and gathering my dpns as the kids were getting strapped into their car seats and Bret was yelling, "Are you ready?" I used to say that knitting is my Valium--apparently it can be just as addicting!

Reading--oh, I really have no time for it, but I have this book of my brother-in-laws, and it just seems too interesting to pass up. So I read a couple of pages a night. I'm sure it will get pretty hair-raising at some point, but I am only just past the introductions.

I hope to find a little time to see what others are doing. If you haven't already, go visit the Yarn Along at Small Things--you'll be inspired!

Perfect day

2011-10-11T06:20:00.000-05:00

We spent the better part of Saturday out in Red Boiling Springs, TN, for "How'd Dey Do Dat Day". There were all sorts of demonstrations in various old-timey occupations and crafts, and we ate our picnic lunch under the shade trees and listened to the bluegrass music being played. Una learned how to card wool and spin it with a drop spindle, and was told that if she got good at it, she could return next year to demonstrate! Very exciting for her, and me, I am fantasizing about owning sheep...

I spent a lot of time with the beekeeper, and found that he lives only a few miles from where we are building our house in Kentucky. He told me there is a beekeeping class coming up in February. I plan to be there.

I think the boys had the most fun with the old hand-cranked corn sheller and grist mill. They literally spent most of our time there taking turns cranking. Boys seem to like to crank stuff, don't they?

It wasn't too hot (unless, like Una, you spent the whole time sitting in the sun carding and spinning!), and it wasn't too crowded (I lost Dominic several times, but I always found him or he found us), and I really look forward to going again next year.

Monday Musings--10 October 2011

2011-10-10T08:46:00.000-05:00

Right now....after 8 a.m. Kids have had breakfast and I need to get moving!

This weekend...was fun, but utterly exhausting! We were out just about all day, every day. On Friday we ran our errands, and there were many. Post office, dropping off a cutlass to a local Etsy customer, thrift stores, shoe stores, grocery shopping. We left the house after 9 a.m. and didn't get home until 4:30 p.m. Our main mission was to find some dress shoes for Una to wear to Mass this fall and winter, and we failed. Still asking St. Anthony to help us find a pair!

On Saturday we left the house again at about 9:30, and, stopping at another thrift shop along the way, went to Red Boiling Springs for "How Dey Do Dat? Day" And I can tell you (as soon as you've stopped laughing) that it was a really nice event. It is held at an old farm, and folks come out to demonstrate their skills in various occupations and crafts. There were woodworkers, a potter, a beekeeper, a blacksmith, a basket weaver, a quilter and a lovely family showing off their sweet sheep and selling their home-canned preserves, breads and herbs. There was a group of musicians, mostly octogenarians, playing bluegrass musing in front of "Grandpa's House", which is the older farmhouse, converted into a gift shop of hand crafted items. I haven't finished editing the photos, but I will try to do a post with some shots tomorrow.

Yesterday afternoon we went to a Fatima Festival, celebrating a bit early the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, which is actually Thursday. A family hosted it on their farm, and there was a nice turn out. There were several priests from The Fathers of Mercy, plus the pastor of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Franklin, KY, and the pastor of St. Joseph's in Central City, KY. There were prayers and hymns, and a crowning of Mary, followed by a bonfire and cookout. We didn't stay for the hayride, much to the children's disappointment. I have photos to edit for that, too.

Some plans for this week: Continuing with the Changing of the Wardrobe, I have the little boy's clothing to do next. Luckily, we have been enjoying some very warm, sunny weather, so that I have had a little extra time. I am planning to get some work done on the watercolor sketchbooks for the Etsy shop (hoping to finish them by the end of this month); planning to get close to finishing at least Una's cardigan and hoping to wash my windows...the actual To Do List is much, much longer, but also very dull and full of menial stuff.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...~~use the bathroom without trying to multi-task at the same time~~ Try to make some headway on the many Etsy/birthday/Christmas projects that I have going, which I try to squeeze in between school and household stuff.

I am grateful for...food in the pantry and a roof over our heads, no major health problems and our Catholic faith.. Sometimes you have to look at the Big Picture and stop sweating all the relatively small stuff.

Some prayer intentions for the week: for the soul of my paternal grandfather, who would have been 91 today, and for my grandma Fran, who misses him; for our friend Dale, who has a birthday this week; for work for Bret (it's never a good time to be broke, but it always makes you a bit more anxious before the holidays!); for health and happiness for all our family.

Something that makes me smile: This little guy we saw on Saturday...no use of his hind legs, but happy as could be with his little wheels!

As always, you are welcome to borrow the header for your own Monday Musings. If you wish, you cans leave a link to your Musings post in the comments here. Happy Columbus Day, and have a great week.

My hands remember...

2011-10-07T07:13:00.002-05:00

In my life B.C. (Before Children, that is), I was a hand bookbinder, and more specifically, a restoration bookbinder. I repaired and restored old books. I discovered the art/science/craft of it quite by chance, thanks to a second hand book dealer who got tired of me spending hours in his shop and told me to make myself useful and find something better to do with my time. He handed me the business card of the man who was to become my mentor and friend.

I took to it with a passion and apparently some natural talent for it. He taught me on books from the vault at the University of Arizona. I have been privileged to turn the pages of some really magnificent books--the types of books you handle wearing white cotton gloves.

When I left Arizona I began to work on my own. Mostly on things of sentimental value--grandma's old cookbook; dad's old high school yearbook; a lot of beastly large Victorian family Bibles. Now and then there would be something really nice to work on. I love restoring 17th and 18th century books. They are beautiful and so dignified (and most require a heck of a lot less gold tooling, which I never did enough of to get really good at!)

Anyway, just as I had discovered my craft a little late (at 29 years old), I also became a first-time mother late (at 35). Una was born, and suddenly the books I had been so passionate about were, well, only books. I still did some work in my bindery, but then Sebastian was born two years later, and I found it almost impossible to find time to work. But I was okay with that, since I was discovering a whole new world through my little son and daughter. The books could wait; the children would not.

When we opened our little Etsy shop back in February, I decided I would make some pocket-sized watercolor journals. I made five of them. It felt good to dust off the sewing frame and pull out the linen thread and beeswax.

My mentor passed away a few years ago, but I have many of his tools and books, and I find myself talking to him occasionally as I work, as I used to sitting at my workbench beside his in Arizona.

I am working on a second batch of watercolor sketchbooks right now. My children are old enough to not need me at every moment (although I am right here when they do), and are numerous enough to keep one another company. Thee oldest are old enough to keep an eye on the little ones. I am finding my "bookbinder hands" again.

You know you have found your craft when you are in love with your medium. Well, I love books and the stuff they are made of. I love the precision required in book making, and I love the many ways in which a book can be put together.

Although it is not exactly like riding a bicycle, it is coming back to me. Luckily I have a pretty good library of books on the craft and a lot of notes to remind me of what I haven't done in about ten years (but for the odd job as a favor for someone). It feels pretty good...

Have you been up to something creative this week? Would you like to see what others have been doing? Stop by Natural Suburbia for Creative Friday and be inspired.

{this moment}: I didn't know they could be so quiet...

2011-10-07T05:41:00.000-05:00

Yarn Along--Cooking on all four burners

2011-10-05T06:20:00.000-05:00

I am joining Ginny's weekly Yarn Along again.

You can see that progress has been made on Una's Sweet Peasy. I have a few more inches of body to do and then I will be down to picking up a billion stitches and doing the button band (I hate picking up stitches almost as much as I hate seaming--but not quite).

Gemma's Mini Chic is so lovely to work on. I still think it will be big, but hopefully not the size 4T it was starting to be. A little room for growth is necessary, and it would be nice for her to be able to wear it for at least a year! I'm going to make it with long sleeves and buttons going all the way down for winter..One error I made is on the button holes. They are too close together and I think I may sew up a few (hopefully as invisibly as possible!) I will be spacing them further apart form here on out.

I also cast on for these adorable slippers. Ginny has knit them, and so has another knitter I happen to be fond of, Nicole of Frontier Dreams. The house is getting chillier, and I think that Gemma needs a pair of these for this fall and winter. I am using some bulky pink wool from my stash that is too scratchy for a sweater of any kind.

Reading? What's that? Honestly, I don't think that I will be able to do much reading on my own between now and Christmas. So I may have to just post about what the kids are reading.

Una is anticipating getting The Shadow of the Bear through the inter-library loan system. I am always on the alert when my kids get really excited about some book I know nothing about, but this book--and this author--look very good indeed. I have linked the title above not to Amazon.com, but to the author's website and synopsis of the book. Just in case Regina Doman's name sounds familiar, she is the Catholic author of this pro-life classic.

Sebastian just finished,, Chasing Vermeer, an art mystery, which he told me has so many twists and turns, his head was swimming until it all got sorted out in the end.

If you need a little knitting or reading inspiration, stop by Small Things and check out the Yarn Along!

Monday--and the peace of surrendering

2011-10-04T06:32:00.000-05:00

Monday began with me feeling anxious and overwhelmed by a long list of things I meant to accomplish--school-related, household stuff, phone calls, and so forth. The mountain of minutiae that is typical for home-schooling moms of large families. Nothing went according to plan, but at some point I let go of the plan and just rode the minutes of the day where they led. And the day turned out remarkably well.

Sewing up some watercolor paper to make sketchbooks for the Etsy shop

Science Horror Theater: the boys caught a praying mantis and put it in the old Radio Flyer wagon arena with a cricket. They got to see the cricket devoured head-first. Ick.

I am hoping Gemma won't somehow be traumatized and make me pick up the tab

for her therapy later on in life.

An unexpected gift--My basil, which went to seed before I could even harvest it early this summer, has had a small, second growth. Not much, but I got another cup of pesto made from it, which I've frozen.

This rather healthy looking guy belongs to our neighbor. I am hoping our heifer notices him and swoons. We need to get that girl bred and milking.

Gave my home made wine a tasting yesterday. It is quite good!

Even hanging out laundry on days like this is a pleasure.

I hope your Monday was pleasant, whether it went according to plan or not!

Monday Musings--3 October 2011

2011-10-03T06:40:00.000-05:00

Right now...It is nearly 6:00 a.m., dark, a bit chilly in the house, and quiet. As usual, Una is doing her Algebra on the office computer.

This weekend...was fairly busy. On Friday the kids finished their work quite early and then worked on a little movie they've been making. It usually involves a lot of costuming and rearranging of furniture and set-creating, and then some filming, and then a lot of cleaning up. Anyway, I let them do their thing while I worked on a few things myself, including the new, updated chore chart.

On Friday night the boys, not including Dominic, decided they would brave sleeping out in the tent by themselves for the first time. Unfortunately, the expedition in the backyard ended in failure at around 11:30 p.m., as the temperature dropped lower than what the forecast had indicated and the shivering little adventurers all came in to climb under their feather comforters! I think that they will have to wait until next summer...

Saturday I did laundry, baked some loaves of honey fruitcake (made the house smell like Christmas!) with Dominic's help--he chopped nuts, snipped dried apricots, measured the raisins, sultanas and dried cherries, and helped peel and grate carrots-- and I began folding and cutting watercolor paper for some new sketchbooks I am going to make for our Etsy shop. I hope to do ten of them by the end of the month...hope that's not too ambitious.

Saturday night was awful. Gemma has been waking--not every night, but a couple of nights per week--screaming like the house is on fire. Even with earplugs I find myself leaping to my feet before I'm even awake. When asked if something is hurting her, she says no most emphatically. I brought her into our room, where she continued to toss about and yell or call for me every 20 to 30 minutes. I brought her into our bed, and she finally settled into a good, quiet sleep--at about 3:40 a.m. Of course it had to be on a morning when I was severely sleep-deprived and when we planned to go to an early Mass that the coffee maker died. Fortunately, we had a spare up in the attic. I managed to get through Mass without falling asleep, but I did lie down for an hour after lunch.

Sunday afternoon was lovely. I worked on sewing up half the sketchbooks and watching/listening to the kids play outside in the golden light of a perfect autumn afternoon. They played with bows and arrows, rode their bikes, chased Sebastian around and Una took out the tin whistle to practice. I had to make do with a mental picture of it, as I couldn't think of any way to really capture it all in photos.

Some plans for the week: okay, the cooler weather is forcing me to quit my procrastinating and start the dreaded Changing of the Wardrobe. It was downright chilly yesterday morning, and I actually had to put the heat on (it was 64 degrees in the house when we got home from Mass). Poor Una needs shoes for this fall and winter--boots, dress shoes and tennis shoes. The girl's feet are now bigger than mine, and I am wearing some of her hand-me-downs!

I also want to make headway on these sketchbooks. We have a number of things we hope to get into the Etsy shop for holiday shoppers. Right now we are keeping up with a demand for cutlasses for Halloween. Seems that there are a lot of pirates out there this year!

I need to bake bread. I have avoided it for a couple of months because having the baking stone preheating at 450 degrees for 45 minutes is not pleasant in the warmer months. Now it doesn't seem like such a bad idea.

If I find some time for myself, I want to...knit like crazy, make things for the shop and get prints made of some of the photos I've taken over the last few months.

I am grateful for...so much! Afternoons like the one I enjoyed today in particular.

Some prayer intentions for this week: for more work for Bret and for all who are seeking work; for me to be efficient and productive so that I may accomplish the many tasks I have before me right now without feeling anxious or overwhelmed; for peace and joy in our home; for Mr. H--a neighbor who nearly lost his eye, but who might regain some sight in it--that he do much better than what the doctors expect.

Something that makes me smile: Bret target shooting with the little guys (just BB guns, folks, which they aren't allowed to use unless Bret is with them). He set up a 2' wide aluminum target that is hard to miss and makes a satisfying "ping" sound when hit, and Dominic almost did a happy-dance every time he hit the target. Adrian was much cooler about the whole thing.

As always, you are invited to take part in the Monday Musings if you so desire. Just grab the header image to use for your own, and then if you want, you can leave a link to your post in the comments. Have a blessed week!

{this moment}: the eyes have it

2011-09-30T05:30:00.000-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. SouleMama.

Ahoy, mateys! A pirate's spyglass tutorial

2011-09-30T04:30:00.000-05:00

It has been nearly two months since Dominic's "pirate birthday", and I had promised a tutorial on his spyglass, which his sister, Una, made for him. As we have had another request for one from another lad in the family, I have had the perfect opportunity to photograph the steps involved.

First, you have to find two cardboard tubes that fit one into the other. There can be a bit of play between the two (we'll make up for that), but not too much. Now cut a piece off the end of the wider one about 1/2" to 3/4" from the end. If this leaves ragged edges, take a piece of sandpaper to them.

Now you will glue that ring of cardboard to one end of the smaller tube. To make up for any play you may have in there, you can cut a strip of paper--any paper will do, but that cut from a brown paper grocery bag is quite good--the width of your ring and glue it around one end of the tube before slipping on the ring, so that you have no gaps between the two.

I used some 2" wide masking tape in the same manner at the other end of the tube to create a little friction, so that they were less likely to slip apart.

Test them out to see that they fit together nicely.

When the glue has dried, give the two tubes a nice coat of black or dark brown craft paint.

You can paint the ring of the eyepiece gold, along with the end of your spyglass. When that is dry, give both sections a good coating of clear gloss acrylic coating.

And there you have your spyglass!

You are ready to go a-pirating with your favorite crew of cutthroats!

I never found a four-leaf clover...

2011-09-29T16:06:00.000-05:00

...and then I hit the jackpot!

Yarn Along--by the time you see this...

2011-09-28T04:30:00.000-05:00

...it will be frogged *sniff*.

I am joining Ginny over at Small Things for her weekly Yarn Along.

I love this yarn. And I absolutely love this pattern It is beautiful and charted so clearly that I thought for sure that even a scatter-brain like me could follow it. I am doing it with worsted yarn (rather than dk) on size 7 needles, and I thought that since I was getting 20 stitches to 10 cm rather than 22, I would go for the directions for the 6-12 month, hoping to get something a wee bit bigger than a 2T.

Not a chance. What I've got is the beginning of a 4T cardigan, which wouldn't be so bad if I didn't already have a 4T Tiny Tea Leaves and Milo for Gemma to grow into! It is not only the gauge (forget about me figuring out how to do the math with the gauge change), but somehow I ended up with the number of stitches for the 18-24 months at this point.

I said the charting was clear; it is obviously not idiot-proof.

I am not giving up, however. The start was so lovely that I will do it all again. I will still be working on the body of Una's Sweet Peasy when I need to do some mindless knitting, as I am done with the increases and lace bits. The yarn, by the way, is Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Pampas, which is mossy and gorgeous.

As for reading, we haven't gotten too far with Swallows and Amazons. The kids are outside most of the time, and I don't see any reason to call them in to listen to me read. Short days and lousy weather will come soon enough.

I do so want to read them this shorter tale, however. It is called Fairy Wings, and I picked it up second hand. The art is really lovely, as you can see.

Not just because Columbus Day is coming, but because we are reading about the early explorers and the European discovery of North America, I am putting this book on Una's reading list:

I am trying to read through this little gem again, as we prepare for her feast day on the first of October.

If you want to be part of Ginny's weekly Yarn-Love/Book-Love fest, drop by Small Things for the Yarn Along.

EDIT: I had to go half a day without comments before I realized that my comments were blocked. If you tried to leave a comment and couldn't, sorry and thanks anyway!

After dinner when the shadows grow long

2011-09-27T04:00:00.001-05:00

Monday Musings--26 September 2011

2011-09-26T06:54:00.000-05:00

Right now...it is just after 6 and raining steadily. Una is on the other computer doing her algebra, and the house is very still.

This weekend...was busy, but very nice. On Friday I spent a bit of time sewing a peasant blouse for Gemma from this online tutorial. I plan to adapt it to a dress pattern with long sleeves for the cooler weather. On Saturday we did our grocery shopping and got home at about lunchtime. I put up a batch of soup using this recipe but adding more beef stock (oh, it was very, very good!) and made a pasta salad to take to my sister's on Sunday using tortellini from Trader Joe's. I also did laundry, trimmed Gabriel's bangs so that he can see again, bathed Gemma and picked out another cardigan pattern to start on so that I have something besides Una's to work on.

Yesterday was lovely. Confession, lovely Mass at the Chapel of Divine Mercy (Fr. Joseph Aytona, CPM was celebrant...we have been friends with him since he was a homesick novice!...and Fr. Pablo Straub was visiting and a concelebrant). The weather was delightful. Came home, changed clothes and went to my sister's to celebrate the birthdays of two of my nephews. Thomas already had a birthday on the 19th and turned 6; James will be 3 on the 30th. It is so much fun to watch the interaction of the cousins. You know what? I charged my camera batteries while we were at Mass; I put them in the camera when we got home from Mass, AND THEN I FORGOT TO TAKE THE CAMERA!!! I was pretty upset with myself. The meal was delightful and we had a brilliant time.

Some plans for this week: Hm...I must be procrastinating again, as they looks suspiciously like the plans for last week. Bake pumpkin bread, start putting away some summer clothes, and so forth. Una and Gabriel have a doctor's appointment on Wednesday, otherwise there are no big plans.

If I find some time for myself, I would like to...spend some time sewing and knitting.

I am grateful for...time spent with my sister's family and the fact that we will be building our house within sight of hers; the sacrament of Confession; the health of my family; a well-stocked pantry when so many in this world go hungry on a regular basis.

Some prayer intentions for this week: For my nephew James, who will be 3 on Friday; for a fruitful 40 Days for Life, which begins on Wednesday, for a good week of learning with the children and for work for Bret, as he wraps up a job this week and moves on to...???

Something that makes me smile: Gemma wearing a 46 year-old dress that I wore at her age!

As always, if you would like to join in the Monday Musings yourself, just grab the header image for your post, and then leave a link to your post in the comments below. And have a blessed week!

An easy, inexpensive skirt for Una

2011-09-23T10:26:00.000-05:00

We found some pretty fabric on sale in the craft section of Wal-Mart, and Una thought it would make a nice skirt. We purchased two yards of it.

I decided to try a gored skirt and make my own pattern. I am a real novice seamstress, but I can often visualize what I have to do to make something work! This is a tutorial for those who haven't a clue...

Since it was to have an elastic waistband, I took Una's hip measurement where it was widest and rounded it up to the nearest half-inch. Then I divided it by four, since it was to be a four-gored skirt. Then I added a half-inch to this measurement to get the width of the top of each panel. The width of the bottom of the skirt would be the full width of my fabric which I had folded to create four layers. Una wanted it long, so I took the length she wanted from waist to hem and added a couple of inches for the elastic casing and the hem allowances.

With me so far? I folded the fabric again lengthwise and made my pattern on paper. The top of the pattern was one-half the measurement I figured for the top of each panel. I created a line from the top to the edge of the fabric at the predetermined length. Then I just eyed a curve on the bottom, so as to avoid points where the gores met. The pattern was cut out and pinned with the straight edge along the fold of the fabric.

The fabric was cut and I had four panels. Here is where I wish I had a serger! I did a zig-zag overlock stitch around all 4 sides of each panel, then began sewing the panels together.. I ironed the seam allowances flat, made my casing for the elastic and inserted it, and but a 1" hem on the bottom. It turned out quite well, and I would love to try an 8-gored skirt some time!

There you have it: Skirt Sewing for Dummies!

If you want to take a look at what other, more creative souls have been up to this week, try visiting Natural Suburbia's Creative Friday.

{this moment}: riding in the rain

2011-09-23T06:11:00.002-05:00

{pretty, happy, funny, real}: 22 September 2011

2011-09-22T18:52:00.003-05:00

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life ~

I am a bit late today in joining Rosie at Like Mother, Like Daughter for this week's edition of {pretty, happy, funny, real}, but here I am, waiting for the pizza dough to rise, with a few minutes to spare.

{pretty}

The view from my kitchen window

{happy}

Gemma has discovered scissors, and gets to use them when mama supervises.

Everyone is thrilled with the fresh batch of homemade play-dough.

{funny}

Gabriel love to ham for me...and yes, he does indeed need a haircut.

"BeBe" really needed a wash, but it is really hard to get her away from Gemma. So at nap time today, she and her other doll, Abbie Rose, had to say "'Night-night" to BeBe out the window. NB: the stain on BeBe's right foot, which was dipped in Bret's coffee one morning, did not come out.

{real}

Number 2,467 in a series of photos of Dominic crashed out in various places.

Stop by Like Mother, Like Daughter to enjoy more {pretty, funny, happy, real}!

Yarn Along--Are we there yet?

2011-09-21T06:07:00.003-05:00

Hello! I am back for another Yarn Along with Ginny over at Small Things.
Those of you who have dropped by for the past, oh, month or so are probably really familiar with the above cardigan. You will note that since last week it has gained a sleeve. That means I am ready to get on with the body, and I can't tell you how happy that makes me.

The cool mornings and evenings are making me feel a wee bit anxious...I still have two sweaters to do after this one, not to mention the other things on my pre-Christmas list, like knitting slippers, mittens, leg-warmers and hats; sewing skirts and dresses and making Christmas gifts and things for the Etsy shop. Okay, so I am feeling more than a wee bit anxious as I ponder that list...!

My only reading this past week, other than some of my favorite blogs, has been school related. And it looks like with all the other things I have on my To Do list, the only reading I will be doing between now and Christmas is reading to the kids (other than the spiritual reading I do in the early hours, that is). But that's okay, as I really get into some of the stuff I read to them. We were supposed to start Swallows and Amazons last week, but a trip to the library got in the way of that. So maybe we will begin today...

If you love knitting and reading, and you haven't done so already, do stop by Ginny's Yarn Along--you'll find loads of inspiration!

A Homeschool Meme

2011-09-20T05:45:00.000-05:00

painting by Margery Mostyn

I have been tagged by one of my favorite blog-mamas, Kimberlee of Pondered in My Heart. I so admire the talented, literate, self-motivated children she and her husband are raising, and my own kids look to hers for their inspiration. I don't usually go in for memes (the name alone is a turn off: "Me! Me!"), but seeing as it came from her...

Okay, eight questions having to do with home schooling:

One homeschooling book you have enjoyed.
There have been many I have enjoyed, but the one that has had the greatest influence on me lately is A Little Way of Homeschooling. It has taken a lot of the anxiety out of home education for me, and this year I think I especially needed that. And although I don't do Classical Education, I do like Laura Berquist's Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum for the great history book lists.

One resource you wouldn't be without.
Out here in the sticks, I would have to say the internet. I use it to look for used, out of print books (our libraries are ghastly out here--I think we have more books in this house!); I read reviews of various curricula; I find kindred spirits, since I don't have any Catholic, homeschooling moms in my immediate area; I find out about great books and resources from other bloggers. I really look at it as a valuable tool, we are very low-tech here, but I realize how much harder schooling--and many other things--would be for me without the internet.

One resource you wish you never bought.
Ah, the True Confessions section of this meme...anything I ever purchased as a download! I told you, we are decidedly low-tech, and I just don't spend more time than I have to doing computer-related stuff. So, everything from the lovely Catholic lapbooks to the whole "Gardening with Children" package I bought online and downloaded has pretty much been a waste. I am also sorry to have purchased Startwrite! I think I used it twice, and it wasn't cheap...

One resource you enjoyed last year.
And one we are using again this year, and will likely use every year, is Teaching Textbooks for math. My kids went from hating math to actually feeling pretty okay with it, and occasionally even enjoying it. I no longer have to do battle with the kids to get them to do it. Likewise, I am sold on the Institute for Excellence in Writing. It requires a bit more of my time than other programs, but I had reluctant writers on whom I had tried various programs. Nothing, it seemed, made them happy to write. Not even journaling! But Andrew Pudewa did it. They actually like to write now. I will tell you that we are on a really tight budget--tighter than ever--but I made the investment in these not-so-cheap programs because they really get results. I can wing it with other subjects, but with math and writing, I will give the kids the most "nutrient dense" curriculum I can find.

One resource you will be using next year.
Next year? I know I will still use TT for Math and IEW for writing. But I don't really know about next year. Una will be going into high school, so it will take some consideration.

One resource you would like to buy.
I feel I can never have too many art and craft supplies. I want lots of them. A big whiteboard would be nice, too, if I knew where to put it. A piano would be great, but again, finding a spot for it might present a problem...

One resource you wish existed.
And drifting into the realm of fantasy, I wish we had a live-in music teacher (I love music, but play no instruments myself), a gym, and a Catholic Church with a daily Mass within walking distance...

One homeschool catalog you enjoy reading.
I love Emmanuel Books and Angelus Press. But I am trying not to look too much at catalogs--too tempting, and I can't afford to buy things I won't use! Catholic Heritage Curricula is always tempting me to buy their sweet things, too!

Tag six other homeschool bloggers!
This could be tricky...many of my favorite bloggers have been tagged!

Grace, at Uncommon Grace
Allison, at Totus Tuus Family & Catholic Homeschool
Kelly, at The Careless Catholic
Suzy, at Scraps of Starlight
Kimberly, at Catholic Family Vignettes
Regan, at A Place for Everything

Gemma's friends

2011-09-19T16:42:00.000-05:00

Ah, near perfect Sunday afternoons with fair weather, easy meals, good friends and

lots of laughing children about. We had one of those yesterday.

That little monkey with Gemma is Madeline Therese.

Gemma was so darned tickled to have some other little girls about.

This is one of Madeline's six older sisters, Abby.

Ooops, there goes the lemonade...

It was a really good afternoon!