SP 12 Week 2 Question

As a kid, what did you look forward to most about summer vacation/break/holiday?

The freedom! We (my closest sibling is 19 months younger than I) would leave the house at 8:00 in the morning (most summers riding our bikes to the swimming pool for 8:30 a.m. lessons -- I think we did this for four summers). Ride our bikes to the library. Playing in the sprinkler. Going to the parks and being outside from morning until dark. Playing softball in the street and SPUD and hide and go seek. And after dinner, our parents would generally sit out on the front stoops and watch while we continued playing until it was too dark to continue.

On rainy days, we cleaned the basement or counted the money in the penny jar. My Mom taught us Canasta and rummy.

We had tons of kids on our street. Blackburns had five (2 of whom were Jacquie and my age); Zerns had five (3 of whom were our age); Rezeks had four (1 of whom was our age); Taluseaks had three (all of whom were our age); Wetzels had three (1 of whom was our age but their cousin came almost every summer); Nalaborskis had five (2 of whom were age); Koopmans had five or six (2 of whom were our age). We all went to school together and belonged to the same church.

We also did competitive Irish step dancing . . . and went to feis (dancing competitions) on the weekends during the summer. There were held all over. We went to Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario, Rochester, NY, Youngstown, OH, Detroit, MI, Cincinnati, OH, Buffalo, NY and, of course, the feis of all FEIS was in Cleveland and my parents volunteered and we worked all weekend to make the event a grand affair.

We learned early on to NEVER EVER tell Mom we were bored . . . boredom led to weeding the garden or yard or cleaning the garage or our bedrooms. Or, worse yet, tell her that we had NOBODY to play with . . . there were seven kids in my family. She hated it when we would say that.

My father could whistle . . . and when it was time to come home, he would stand on the front porch and whistle. If we didn't hear it, one of the neighbors would and the message would go down the road that the Nageotte kids' Dad was whistling for them and we would all come running.

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Thanks so much. These are things that I haven't thought of in years. I wonder if my kids will remember their youth as being so fun.

Franklin, my Mom and socks

If you haven't read Franklin lately or ever, you need to go over and read this post of his. It really made me think about our knitting, talents, passions. It also got me thinking about my Mom and Grandma (her Mom).

When we were young, my Mom sewed and knit and crocheted out of necessity . . . seven kids . . . need I say more. Then as we grew older she continued to work her crafts out of passion. She sewed beautifully and made all of our first communion and wedding dresses (5 daughters, 1 daughter-in-law). When I was planning on making my oldest daughter's first communion dress, she asked if she could. She said (and please wait a minute while I wipe my eyes, gulp, okay), she said that wanted to do it because "she wouldn't be around to make her wedding dress." It is beautiful.

My Mom was an artist. Now, as an adult, I wonder if she was ever frustrated with her "lot." I think not because she often said that Dad was her passion and we, her children, were the blessings of their love. But, she was brilliant. She was smart and artistic and funny. My Dad worked in machine repair at Chevy. He could fix anything but it was my Mom who would take apart the toaster, iron and any small appliance and fix it. Actually, when they first came out, my Mom got my Dad an electric screwdriver because she would install things but didn't have the hand strength to tighten the screws.

I cannot tell you the number of times that she replaced the tile and flooring in our kitchen/dining room.

And she knit and crochected and did hand-hooked rugs (shopping at goodwill for 100% wool garments to dye for her rugs).

But she knit when we were young because she had to. And I, being a normal child, was embarrassed over our hand-knit hats and mittens and socks. I remember being in 5th or 6th grade and begging her for knee socks (ours were always fold over socks). That Christmas she knit me knee socks and was so excited and I was appalled cause I wanted store-bought socks. I hope she never knew. The only thing to my credit was that I did wear them.

It wasn't until years later (and my first sock knitting fiasco) that I realized that the reason she didn't knit knee socks was because she had so many damn socks to do and, probably to add another three or four inches to each pair (and there were five girls) would take too much time and too much yarn (neither of which was in great supply).

I am so blessed because I can knit just for the joy of doing so. I have access to a couple of good LYS (although I could probably open one myself from my stash). I have needles and patterns and the ability to do anything I want. I can buy fabulous yarns. And I knit because I like it.

The one thing I don't make is socks!

It is frogged

I frogged the scarf.

Sent an email to Cindi. She is cool with it and, frankly, it gives us both some breathing room since she is working on another project too!

So, silly me, I almost posted what I was going to do instead. Oops.

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We leave on vacation on Friday. We will be gone for two weeks, spending them in at the Georgian Manor Resort in Collingwood, ON which is about 2 hours driving north of Toronto. On the return, we have reservations on the Canadian side of the Falls for the night of July 4th. Partly because we don't want to be driving on the 4th with those who may have enjoyed their celebration too much (or is that just an Ohio thing) and partly because we want to spend time at the Falls with the kids.

For the first time, Sarah will not be joining us on vacation. She has two classes that she is taking this summer (med. terminology and biology) and has classes four days a week. Since these are condensed classes (15 weeks jammed into 10), she cannot afford to miss one week, much less two. Actually, we were surprised that she wanted to go with us last year, but then again, we went to Florida and Williamsburg last year and she LOVES vacations like that. This vacation would not be high on her hit list of things to do. It will be, hopefully, quite a bit of laying around, reading, knitting, sleeping, eating, drinking (both alcohol and non-alcoholic stuff . . . Dave and I usually go through two pots of coffee every morning).

We are allowing Lindsey to bring her bestest friend in the whole entire world. Cortney is a great kid and they have known each other since second grade, talk to each other daily and spend as much time with each other as possible, a mean feat sometimes considering that we live about 25 miles away from her. The girls are already planning their days: Breakfast, sun, lunch, sun, dinner, movie, sleep. I keep telling them that we are going to be TWO HOURS NORTH OF TORONTO. Right now, it is 54 degrees there.

Zachariah is bringing his PSP (playstation portable). He is limited to 60 minutes a day, except in the car. Any arguments regarding PSP playing time and I take it away.

Dave and I are bringing books, knitting, books.

It should be a grand time.

Meme

If you read this,
if your eyes are passing over this right now,
even if we don't speak often,
please post a comment with a memory of you and me.
It can be anything you want -- good or bad.

When you're finished, post this little paragraph on your blog and be surprised (or mortified) about what people remember about you.

And other stuff

So, you might wonder what this is, hmmmmm. It is my ponytail. While it may not look like it, it is 11 inches of hair.

And this is Lindsey's hair. We donated it to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths because they will take as little as eight inches which is just about all Lindsey was willing to part with. Unfortunately, the young lady cutting her hair got a little carried away and probably cut off about 10 inches. For her, they put her tails into four bundles.


Oh, and because this is a knitting blog, I thought I would include some knitting. We are doing a one skein swap at WhoDuKnit. And I have this grand skein of yarn. Now, I started this as a scarf and really liked it but have decided that I didn't but I had put such a commitment into it (there are lots and lots of stitches in this baby) that I couldn't stop now. So, what do you think? Triangles, a scarf it is warm but skinny (about 4 inches).

But then I was sitting at a meeting at church on Wednesday evening, cheerfully knitting away, the envy of a bunch of other people who wished they had remembered their knitting or crocheting. When I looked down and had a stupid realization that I had made a really stupid mistake. Can you see it?

Oh, here is a close up: Yeah, it isn't supposed to have an angle. For some reason, on the last triangle, I didn't go to the end of the row and start the next triangle, so my triangle turned. Piss on it! You have no idea how irritating I find this. I did not use lifelines, why would I. Its a scarf for crimminy's sake. And, I have to be totally honest here, I am not really good about being able to pick up stitches when I rip.

Therefore, the question is do I try to rip it back to the error OR, since I'm not too terribly fond of the thing anyway, do I rip the whole thing out and start over? Decisions, decisions. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Friday Fill In - 6/13/08

1. A cruise is high up on my bucket list.
2. My favorite quote is "put on your big girl's panties and suck it up"; don't know where it's from.
3. Knitting inspired me to start blogging.
4. Strawberries are best freshly picked and still warm.
5. My kids were all babies at the same time in the last dream I remember having.
6. The most enjoyable time to go for a walk is early morning.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to folding clothes, tomorrow my plans include a friend's daughter's graduation party (which is being held at our house) and Sunday, I want to relax!

SP 12 Question of the Week

My most favorite summertime beverage is brewed iced tea. Right now I am on a Green Tea Iced Tea binge. I make regular tea and green tea in one cup in the morning. Leave both bags in the water until after lunch. Dump the 12 or so ounces of "tea" in a 24 oz cup. Fill with ice, top off with water and yummy for me!

So, what is your most favorite summertime beverage??? hmmmmm??

weird and weirder

So, I fell down about three steps at work on Wednesday and, let me tell you, I have the bruises to prove it. Now, it may bizarre but I generally don't fall down steps, I fall up steps. I fall up steps on such a regular basis that I have very specific criteria for going up steps.

• I do not go up steps if I have anything in my hands (almost a guaranteed tumble in that)
• I do not go up steps in heels
• I do not go up steps (except at home) anytime after about 3:00 p.m.

Actually, I was quite proud of myself when we went to the Captains game and I managed two sets of steps (48 and 41 steps each) and didn't take a tumble. On the other hand it really helped that there were a lot of people there so I didn't have to worry about going overly fast.

Anyway, last Wednesday, I'm trotting off to lunch. I currently sit on the second floor of our building and make it a point of going down the steps on a regular basis. I even take the elevator to the third floor and take the steps down to second . . . I do get some queer looks with that one but, what the heck do I care. So, off I go to lunch. There are 26 steps between each floor (13/landing/13). I get to the bottom three and in slow motion start falling. I have a chipped bone in my big toe on my right foot. I may have a fracture in my foot but they told me that it often doesn't show for up to 14 days. He thinks not and considering the fact that the swelling is mostly gone, it is a good thing.

On the other hand, I have bruises that keep appearing. I have bruise that runs from my waist to my upper thigh on my left side . . . don't ask how it happened. I vaguely remember thinking that it felt like my pants and panties were having a fight with the steps or wall and I was getting burned. My ribs hurt (nothing cracked or broken, just sore) and my left shoulder and, of course, both of my hands. Again, nothing but bruises but they are those wonderful deep purple ones.

The course of treatment is ice, ice and ice.

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But today is Sunday. It is a beautiful day. It is especially beautiful. I woke this morning around 6:00 a.m. and took my coffee and book to the back porch. We spent this morning swimming in the pool before the heat got too horrendous and it did wonderful things to cool us down. We have been breaking temperture highs since Wednesday. Actually, I think today is the coolest and it is 95 degrees on my porch.

It is the kind of heat that just hangs there. After cleaning the house yesterday, I was drenched and looked like I had taken a shower. In fact, the princess asked if I had because, you know, she was going to take a shower after lounging by the pool all afternoon, and she knew that she had mentioned that to me before she went out and hoped that I hadn't used all the hot water. Yeah, like I was going to use hot water anyway!!! I have to say it was especially funny when she came downstairs to discover that Dave was in the shower . . . of course, he had been working on the lawn mower all afternoon. He and I were going to a retirement party later in the evening.

The princess of course, needed to shower because she was going to church and youth ministry function and needed to be at her best and not looking sunblocked and windblown. Poor thing.

The princess: Don't be fooled, she isn't really working . . . she went over to change the radio station!

Zachariah was wondering what she was up to.

Friday Fill In

1. Idle hands are bored hands.
2. I love "soaking" in the shower (unfortunately my dermotologist says no more than five minutes).
3. My favorite time of the day is when the kids are all in bed and I know everyone is home where they belong.
4. The last tea I drank was Tetley . . . yesterday afternoon.
5. I like to relax in the pool in the Summer.
6. My mother always said wrong side of your work should be as neat the the right side of your work . . . which explains why I like to sew using french seams.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to doing as little as possible, tomorrow my plans include a retirement party for the LD teacher at Dave's school and Sunday, I want to relax!

Zachariah

This is St. Stanislaus Elementary School in Cleveland. The first floor left corner (four windows) is my husband's first grade classroom. He is just finishing his tenth year teaching at St. Stan's.

Last year, one of his students was our son Zachariah. Zachariah loves reading. His sister, Lindsey, loves reading too but Dave really believes that Zachariah loves reading more than Lindsey does. Even if he is playing on the computer, he loves those action games that have themes and story lines!

The chair he is sitting in is my kids favorite chair all variety of activities. It was my Mom's and the frame is broken on one side but the kids love it for reading or sitting or when they don't feel well.

And sometimes it just gets too hard to keep that book up while you are reading it and you have to lay over the arm of the chair . . .
oh, but I'm getting to the good part . . . that Junie B. Jones . . . what an exciting read!

On Sunday, May 18, Zachariah made his first communion along with five of his classmates at the Shrine Church of St. Stanislaus. St. Stanislaus is in the Slavic Village area of Cleveland. Slavic Village has really taken a beating in recent years, both literally and figuratively. If they could afford to, many of the residents would move away. However, many of the residents who have moved away from the area continue to support the church and school. When Dave first joined the staff at St. Stan's he taught one of the second grade classes. There were 42 students in second grade and 40 of them made their first communion that year. This year there are 26 students in second grade and only six are Catholic.

One of the Church's claims to fame was that a Polish born cardinal came to visit . . . shortly before he became Pope John Paul II.

It is a beautiful church and school.

Here is a picture that I took of some of the group.

Before the Mass started, Zachariah had to deal with his tie. And, no thank you, I can do it myself!

Lindsey took this pic in front of the Church doors.
And here is a pic of the main doors and front of the church. It is only a small piece of the entire campus which consists of the church, rectory, convent, elementary school and high school, filling one city block.

And here is Zachariah's GQ pic.

And finally, the official photo as taken by one of the parishioners. Zachariah is and probably always will be the smallest in his class. Of course, he is also the youngest but I don't think his age will make that big of a difference in comparing the sizes of all the kids.

It was a beautiful day. Many family and friends got to join in on this beautiful celebration!

Secret Pal 12 Questionnaire

SP 12 Questionnaire!!
1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I love natural fibers. I am currently lusting after anything silk/mohair type yarn. Given what I learned to knit with (see #3), I have never had a desire to knit with mohair but geez the stuff they have out now is super fabulous! I despise acrylics and fru-fru yarns . . . eyelash yarn is the work of the devil.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
I have Knitpicks Options and have the original binder. I also have this wonderful cloth-sided zipped craft binder that easily holds all my bits and pieces.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
My gram bought me yarn (mohair), needles and a pattern (a sweater with cables) for my 8th birthday . . . what was she thinking??? I like intermediate stuff but could do advanced with just thinking about it for a little bit but, frankly, I like my knitting to be fun and not something where I am telling my kids to leave me alone because I'm concentrating on it! LOL!!

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
I do have a wish list on Amazon and there is a link in the column to the left. Thanks for asking.

5. What's your favorite scent?
Chanel #5 but alas, my darlin' hubby is allergic to everything.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
Of course I have a sweet tooth which explains the size of my butt! My most favorite candy are Heath Bars.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I scrapbook and make cards (not well but enjoy doing it). My sister just gave me a drop spindle. It keeps rolling across the floor which is very entertaining for my hubby and kids.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like rock, mostly classic rock. My IPOD has a very ecletic blend on it right now, including Rod Stewart, Queen, Il Divo, Tony Bennett and the Cleveland Orchestra, go figure.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
Green. I love green and greenish blues. Oh, and red. I live in red and black (my most favorite jacket for work is reversible . . . black on one side, red on the other). I cannot stand yellow. I look hideous in it.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
Married for 28 years, three kids (22, 14 and 7 -- girl/girl/boy). We do have an outdoor cat. She is ten and very mellow these days.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
I do. I live in Cleveland. We have two seasons: road construction and winter

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
one or two skein projects. I have serious knitting ADHD . . . I am currently working on, oh, look something bright and soft and . . .

13. What are you knitting right now?
A secret thing for another not-secret-pal thingee. My son's sweater (a never ending project since the little rug rat keeps growing) and a hat for the 14 year old that I hate. I also have the Mystery Stole 3 mostly done but just got too distracted and need to spend too much time concentrating on it to make it pleasurable. Oh, and a clutch.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Yes.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
Circulars. I am currently in the process of collecting all of KnitPicks Harmony tips. They are lovely, truly lovely. I am also lusting after the Harmony DPs for those projects where I do need them.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
No, but I have kids and so far the 7 year is still fun enough that he doesn't mind being a swift.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Remember the sweater from my Gram? Just kidding . . . that is one that I did finish. I have a Kaffe Fassett sweater that I have been making for years. It is just something that you cannot knit in the summer since it is heavy and complicated . . . again, the ADHD kicked in.

18. What is your favorite holiday?
Christmas.

19. Is there anything that you collect?
My husband would say yarn . . . actually, I don't collect anything.

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
Any one skein or quick knit books. I have subscriptions to Interweave Knits and Cast On.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
I cannot do the two socks thing. Actually socks just bore me but I do like sock yarn for other projects (100% wool because I also like to felt)

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
See 21.

23. When is your birthday?
October 9

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?
Yes. mlj1954

ah, Monday

Why is it that we can have weekends that we do absolutely nothing and then there are the weekends that we hop from one thing to another.

I had a baby shower to attend on Saturday, a 70th birthday party for a friend (held at the Captain's game -- The Captains are a minor league team for the Cleveland Indians), friends over for dinner last evening and Dave spent all day Saturday from about 7:00 a.m. until 30 minutes before we had to leave for the game at school fixing the report cards for the entire school (there was a computer glitch that forced him to go in and manually fix each teacher's grade books).

Sunday morning at church, Mass had just started, Zachariah pulled at my sleeve and said I don't feel good. One look at his face and we left. Shortly after we got home, he announced that he felt better and could he get out of bed (my solution to any child who informs me that he or she is sick at church or school is that they immediately go to bed and have some quiet time . . . if they are really sick, they generally fall asleep; if they are only slightly ill and this worked to get out of doing something they may not have been to keen on, they aren't doing anything fun either). Well, while he laid down, I ironed Dave's shirts and then started working on my closet. Just the bags and totes that I have accumulated and generally get drop kicked into my closet. What a mess. I think I have enough yarn to open a shop. I also discovered some yarn and craft things that were my Mom's. I didn't even get to the clothing.

Later Zachariah and I spent time outside playing and planting green peppers. And then we relaxed until our friends came for dinner. I am exhausted.

Friday Fill In - 5/30/2008

1. For me death is the opposite of creativity.
2. My Sister's Keeper was the last excellent book I read.
3. I like fill-ins because it makes me think outside my comfort zone.
4. In nature I like looking at sunsets.
5. John Edwards should win the US elections. SIGH.
6. The last time I laughed with all my belly was May 3 when my sisters and brother and his wife came for dinner.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to spending one-on-one time with Zachariah, tomorrow my plans include a baby shower and 70th birthday party and Sunday, I want to finish the garden!

300 hats for children of the Ukraine -- HELP NEEDED

Kristy is collecting 300 hats to take to children in the Ukraine. Yes, I said 300 hats. Oh, and did I mention that she is leaving in September?

If you want information about the project, please click here.

So, who will be getting these hats, this is a pic of some of the potential recipients:




So, the thing is, how long does it take to knit a hat?
And, if you are like me, you have yarn in your stash.
And, you don't even have to go looking for a pattern cause there are many online . . .

Knitpicks has a page of free patterns.
Knitting-and.com has more free patterns.
and, of course, knitty.com has even more free patterns.

So, go check it out . . . please . . . with sugar on top.

Friday fill in - 5/23/08

1. On my laziest day I like to read books and drink tea or coffee!
2. Checking things off my "to do list" makes me feel like I'm being productive.
3. I love little kids and big hugs.
4. This summer I want to ride my bike at least three times a week.
5. Knitting made me start my blog.
6. Red and gray and orange and black . . . my high school colors and the colors of the high school in my community.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Dave, Zachariah and I having some time together, tomorrow my plans include 15 teens at my house and Sunday, I want to recover!

Worldwide Knit in Public Day 2008

So, the worldwide Knit in Public Day is scheduled for Saturday, June 14. Unfortunately, I have plans for that day and won't be anyplace with a group of knitters. BUT, I will be knitting anyway.

If you are interested in finding out if there are any organized WWKIP events scheduled in your area, go to the website which can be found HERE!

Friday Fill In - on Monday - 5/19/08

1. There is absolutely NO way you can get me to eat raw fish!
2. The opening of our pool reminds me that summer is almost here!
3. I cannot live without my family.
4. Yarn spinning and quilting are two things I'd like to try.
5. When life hands you lemons, put on your big girl panties and suck it up.
6. Our loud (7 kids) boisterous house is my favorite childhood memory.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to cooking, tomorrow my plans include cooking and Sunday, I want to enjoy Zachariah's First Communion!

Friday Fill in - 5/2/2008

1. Two of my favorite ingredients in a drink are spicy bloody mary mix and vodka!
2. My kids often amaze me.
3. You can keep doing that forever, the dog is sleeping.
4. Ground meat, chopped cabbage, chopped onion and rice, mix it all together and voila! You have stuffed cabbage casserole!.
5. If I had a yard with a garden, I would love to grow flowers. Oh, I do have a yard but I also have a husband with horrible allergies, so we grow veggies, lots and lots of veggies
6. Fresh from the garden tomatoes are best au naturel.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to finishing laundry, tomorrow my plans include dinner with my sisters and Sunday, I want to celebrate Sarah's 22nd birthday!

Bold what you have done . . .

I saw this list on Jerry's blog and just wondered how many I have done. 69 of 150
Someone else's Life’s To Do List
(bold what you’ve done)
01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink (there were only four of us . . . LOL)
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said ‘I love you’ and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris, just the airport
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby’s diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 10 provinces
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your cds
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror.
96. Raised children.
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an illness that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone’s heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone’s life

Friday fill in - 4-25-08

1. When I fell in love, I just knew it was right . . . right time, right place, right guy!
2. I really enjoy sitting on my back porch when the flowers bloom and it heats up outside!
3. Oh no! The internet connection is down, I'm going to bed!
4. CSPAN is the craziest tv show ever . . . seriously, why would anyone want to do that to their brain.
5. Cheese and crackers and wine make a great meal!
6. We will soon plant our vegetable garden. While I don't enjoy working in a garden, I do enjoy the fruits of the labor.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Zachariah and I having some time alone, tomorrow my plans include Zachariah's swimming and laundry and 4:30 mass and Sunday, I want to visit my sister and do a field trip with Zachariah and Lindsey!

28 years . . . and more . . .

So, another year has gone by, and Dave and I are celebrating our 28th wedding anniversary. Today. Amazing.

He is a truly wonderful person.

He teaches 1st grade at a Catholic elementary school in Cleveland. Whenever I am at the school and watching him, I am totally in awe. He has infinite patience with the students and their families.

He is great with our kids . . . and trust me when I say that our kids would try the patience of Job or their Mom . . . and he just rolls with it.

And he loves me . . . with all my warts and weirdness. And he likes to vacuum and make the bed and thinks I'm funny. Gosh, I am blessed.

Friday Fill In - 4-18-08

1. The last time I lost my temper I was yesterday when I got home from work and my daughters had gone shopping and left their mess in the kitchen sink . . . took a deep breath and left a cell phone message that went something like "the next time you all decide to bake, you need to clean up after yourselves . . . thanks so much for starting dinner (they hadn't) . . . enjoy your shopping . . . see you soon . . . love, Mom"!
2. STUPID, MEAN people is what I'm fed up with!
3. The next book I'd like to read is The Other Boleyn Girl.
4. Tonight, with Dave, is what I'm looking forward to.
5. If you can't get rid of the skeleton[s] in your closet, pulverize their bones and plant them in the garden . . . I hear its really good for the tomatoes!
6. The best thing I got in the mail recently was a note from a friend, a real, honest to Pete, hand-written, thinking about you, note.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to celebrating our 28th wedding anniversary, tomorrow my plans include getting my teeth cleaned and Sunday, I want to work on and finish the Freshman banner (and why did I volunteer to do this?)!

Lusting after things . . . and is it a sin?

So, if you are lusting after something that is supposed to be good for you, is it a sin?

Okay, here's the thing. Zachariah got a bike last year. My bike is about 13 years old. Sarah's is about 10 years old. Lindsey fell on my bike last year and flattened a tire. When I went to change it, I discovered that the wheel was bent. She then proceeded to also flatten Sarah's tire (she doesn't recall how, really, she was just riding it and had put it away and the next day it was flat, really, really).

But not to worry. Sarah is getting a brand new bike from a neighbor who had bought it for his 13 year old son last year. The kid had the nerve to grow about six inches since last summer. Last year, he was under 5 feet tall. Lindsey is getting a wonderful bike from a friend who has decided that she, too, needed something smaller.

Which leaves me without a bike . . . . and thus the lusting comes in. I started looking at bikes for me. A new bike. One with big fat tires so that I don't feel like I'm flattening them out and I also don't appear to be racing. Something that says "this woman is just out riding her bike and maybe her butt will get smaller in the process." The pink bike above is a Schwinn Roxie Cruiser. Very cool.

The other one is a Schwinn Clear Comfort Bike.

I like them both. A LOT.

And, this is probably the bigger sin than lusting over a bike, neither of my girls will ride either one, especially the pink one . . . of course, according to them, they won't ride with me either, especially if I get a pink helmet and pink shorts and maybe a pink vest, oh, and with either one, I'm putting a basket on the front. After all, our most favorite place to bike to is the Library!

So, what do you think? Is lusting after a bike a sin?

Friday, May 11, Friday-Fill-In

Friday Fill-In #67
1. I love springtime in Cleveland . . . four seasons . . . its a beautiful thing!
2. Breads are foods I love to eat for breakfast.
3. It seems I'm always searching for my glasses!
4. A goodnight kiss is a great way to end the day.
5. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!
6. Coffee is what I've been craving lately.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to posting my Friday Fill In, tomorrow my plans include swimming, library and 4:30 Mass and Sunday, I want to work on the banner for the SJA Class of 2011 Banner!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

betcha didn't think I was going to get it posted!

Phew, where did March go to?

Easter weekend we had snow, gloom and gray. But March just flew by. I don't know if it was because Easter was so early or that the month was just filled with activities and travel (Lindsey to Dallas, Sarah to Tucson, me to Chicago -- all the week after Easter). The following weekend after Easter, we went to my sister's home in Kentucky to celebrate her youngest daughter's 6th birthday. Here she is getting ready to blow out her candles.

Zachariah picked out her birthday presents which included a baseball bat, glove and ball. From this photo the boys seem to think it is totally awesome. Aidan (the little boy in green) was shocked that anyone would buy a girl a bat and glove!

Mary is in kindergarten but had no problem reading her birthday cards. The only thing that threw her for a loop was that some of her relatives signed their names in cursive. Fortunately, my darlin' hubby is a first grade teacher and WE print everything (or we probably would have signed our names in cursive too!).

Last Friday, April 4, I wore my winter coat to work as the morning temperature was 32 degrees (F). Yesterday, we visited friends and spent most of the afternoon sitting on their porch. It was about 60 degrees (out of the sun) and got actually hot while sitting in the sun!

I have Zachariah's sweater done to the armholes. I keep reading the instructions to add the sleeves. Before I do that, however, I am going to have to measure the sleeves again. I noticed that some of his shirts are getting short in the sleeve so I think I may have to go back and add on to them. Sigh.

Friday Fill In - 3/21/08

1. Vacationing is so exciting!
2. Strawberry fields are really good when dipped in chocolate.
3. sounds like it would taste delicious!
4. Why does getting a pedicure make me feel so good?!
5. My Gram's girlhood home in Ireland is something I've always wanted to see.
6. It's sad when you see your children struggle.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to getting home before the snow, tomorrow my plans include going to the doctor and Sunday, I want to play with Zachariah!

Happy Easter everyone!

Our trees are budding . . .

Spring is coming . . . cause our trees are budding!

I finally finished with Fetching in Dave Daniel's kaleidoscope. It is great fun. And, I kept them for myself. Ha!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week has been one of those where I just can't seem to get off the carousel.

Monday was St. Patrick's Day. The girls (and one of Lindsey's friends) went to the Parade. They took the Rapid (our local train system) downtown and then came down to the office and then I drove them home.

Tuesday, I had a doctor's appointment in the afternoon. I have had a disgusting nail fungus that the docs have been fighting with for awhile. Everytime, we begin to think it is all cleared out, it comes back with a vengence. Tuesday, he decided to remove the nail. Great fun. Ha!

Wednesday found me greating a repairman. Who, after examining our water-soaked crawl space, stated that it wasn't because of their water sealing job but a plumbing job. Fortunately, it wasn't a toilet problem but a pipe that is broke from the kitchen sink. So the only stuff dumping into my crawl space is all the stuff that has been coming from the sink, including the garbage disposal and dishwasher. A really lovely thing. I also picked up Lindsey at school and took her to the airport for her flight to Dallas. It was only about 45 minutes late in departing. When I got home, I had to remove the bandage from the toe. Not an easy job, especially since it hurt worse than it had when it was first removed.

Thursday found me at work, trying to get my act together because I am spending next week in Chicago. But, I there were crises after crises . . .

so what am I doing . . . . I am blogging . . . go figure!

St. Patrick's Day and other fun stuff

So, Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone.

The pic is of Achill Island . . . where my Gram grew up. This view is not far from her girlhood home. The wild west coast of Ireland.

When I was younger (a lot younger) my family and I marched in Cleveland's St. Patrick's Day parade. My youngest sister was a majorette (when she started, the youngest in the bunch), my younger brother was in the fife and drum corp and two of my other sisters and I were in the drill team. We practiced every Sunday afternoon, starting the first Sunday after New Year's. After doing this for about 9 years, I quit and have not been to a parade since. However, my oldest daughter went last year with friends and this year both girls are going. I have to say, while I might be tempted to join them, there have been too many years where I spent the day freezing or wet or both, to bear risking it.

Anyway, my husband decided to buy corned beef for dinner for last evening. He does the grocery shopping and since it has been years since I made corned beef (seriously, the last time I did, it was sooooo awful that we called it LURCH SOUP . . . I don't remember why but it just seemed appropriate at the time). However, I decided to give a shot again and being internet savvy now, I searched out recipes and ended up with this one:

combine:

3 cups water
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Put the following in a crock pot in this order:

2 pounds corned beef brisket with spice packet, cut in three chunks and fileted
1 medium onion, cut into wedges

2 stalks celery

1 pound carrots cut into big chunks

4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered

1 small head cabbage, chopped

The recipe said to put all the vegetables in the crock pot first and top with the beef. With flashbacks to my previous attempt, I reversed the order. I also cut the hunk of meet into three chunks and then fileted them. The reason being is that all the comments made about the various recipes said that any of the meat that was not covered with water ended up tough. I turned the crock pot on high for 3 hours and then reduced it to low for another 3 hours. I then sorted out the vegetables (not an easy task) but threw the potatoes into a pan with butter, chives and garlic and browned them a bit, sauted the cabbage with butter. I left the carrots and onions in the "broth" with the corned beef while the cabbage and potatoes were in the other pan.

The corned beef was totally wonderful, even Zachariah loved it. Lindsey isn't eating meat but she was sorely tempted. Instead she made a vegetable sandwich . . . a sight to behold.

Since Dave had bought a large head of cabbage, I only used half and used the other half and made stuffed cabbage. We will have that on Wednesday.

To top the whole thing off, I made Irish Soda bread. It was my Gram's recipe and is just a lovely thing. Of course, Zachariah didn't like that. Instead, he ate three slices of regular rye bread.

Gram's Irish Soda Bread:

4+ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Tbs. caraway seeds
1-1/2 cup butter (soft - not melted)
1-1/2 cup raisins
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Rehydrate raisins by covering raisins with water and bringing to a boil. Drain just before combining with dry ingredients.

Soften butter if necessary (it should be soft but not melted). Combine dry ingredients. Add caraway seeds. Mix. Add drained raisins. Mix. Add butter and milk. Mix. If batter is too goopy, add more flour. Dump into large (about 8" to 10") cast iron fry pan or use any round pan. (Pampered Chef's bakers work well too . . . cake pans do not).

Bake for about one hour. Bread should be brown and dry on top. Yummy.

Okay, so that's all I've got . . . well, except that this is a map of Achill Island. My Gram grew up in Pollagh.

March 3 to March 9, 2008, a lovely week

So what did you do this past week? My week has been controlled by the elections and the weather. Sarah and I worked the elections on Tuesday. It only took about 50 minutes of chiseling to get the van open. For the election, we dealt with a vast number of individuals who switched their party loyalty from Republican to Democrat. We also had to deal with the idiocy of paper ballots as opposed to the wonderful electronic system that worked well in November. From the comments made, Ohio's secretary of state will only be a one term public official!

Wednesday morning I awoke with a hideous sinus headache, no doubt having to do with the ice storm and wacked barometric pressure. I got dressed, went downstairs, looked outside, Dave told me that it was horribly icy, looked outside again and went back to bed! Wise decision. I spoke to a couple of people I worked with and those that did make it, spent up to two hours getting there! All the schools, including colleges, were closed on Wednesday.

On Thursday morning, just as I arrived downtown, a major water main broke in the middle of Public Square. I took a cab home that evening. Traffic was still standing at 6:30 p.m.

Friday evening, the office closed at 4:15. I left at 4:30 and pulled into my garage at 6:30. The next time I left the house was Sunday afternoon when we took Lindsey out for her 14th birthday lunch.

The back yard in the height of the storm . . . and Sarah's car in the driveway, around the same time, 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 8, 2008

Sunday, March 9, 2008 at around 9:00 a.m., the storm had stopped, the winds died down and what is left is about 20 inches of snow and 4 foot drifts!

Dave and the kids spent a little more than two hours clearing the driveway. It would have been longer except that a good neighbor came over with his snow blower and helped them with more than half the drive.

Friday Fill In - 2/29/2008

Friday Fill-Ins #61

1. I'm looking forward to the election next week . . . cause it will mean I'll stop getting calls from Hillary and Obama and John.

2. I don't handle compliments very well.

3. Bread is something I could eat every day.

4. Warmth and sunlight, will we ever see them again?

5. Sprint here I come!

6. I despise tattoo(s).

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to spending time with friends and family, tomorrow my plans include sleeping in and Sunday, I want to work on my vacation album!

The House that Yarn Built

So sometimes we just knit along and make things for the sake of making things. If you are like me, you also buy yarn because it is luscious or soft or delicate or because . . .

Anyway, Christy Clark is working on a Make It Right project. And here, I am going to copy directly from Lime & Violet:

"Christy Clark, the bell behind the scenes of the Confessions of a Misplaced Southern Belle blog, is using her sock diet mojo to do some good this 2008. She’s jumped on board the Make it Right project (yep the Brad Pitt thing) to help build homes in the Lower 9th Ward in New Orleans. In her own words:

'This year, I’d like to do something to make a difference. Many of us have yarn stashes that can keep us in yarn for years without ever having to darken the door of the local LYS or point and click on our favorite online shop. Many of us have declared 2008 the year of the yarn diet. I know that I can certainly knit all year at least with the stuff in my stash. For 2008, I’d like for everyone to donate money to Make it Right. I figure that an average skein of sock yarn runs about $20.00 and that if 7,800 knitters would donate the equivalent of one skein of sock yarn, a family in New Orleans might just be able to get their lives back on track.'

Now that is truly the power of yarn. I think she’s right. I think we can do it. Of course we can do it! To sweeten the pot she’s playing some fun and games too. Fibery goods are pouring in and she plans to do a series of drawings from the pool of those that donate…so yes Virginia, there may be more sock yarn after all. Check out the official site at The House That Yarn Built for full details."

As I said, I couldn't improve on this plea. So think about it and send a $5 or $10 or $20 donation . . . or whatever you would be comfortable with. It is a great opportunity to help just a bit.

Have a great day everyone!

Happy Birthday Dad

My Dad was the sweetest guy around. He had the patience of Job (one bathroom, five daughters . . . seriously, the man deserves sainthood!). Dad died in 1984. He had a stroke and nine days later, he had a massive heart attack. He had not been sick and had been retired for a couple of years, golfed every day and had told me only the week or so before, that he hadn't felt so good in years.

It is amazing that so many years have passed. I can still hear his voice and know that he is still watching out for all of us. I can still see him with all of my nieces and nephews as babies. He could take any fussy, crabby baby, and he would just wrap them up tight, snuggle down in his chair and coo to them. Pretty soon, he and the crabby baby would both be sound asleep.

I would have loved him to have met my children. I know that he would have loved Sarah's gentleness and Lindsey's laughter and brilliance. And Zachariah, he would have been the one sitting on our family room floor and playing with the train set. It is so strange because I can see him there, adjusting the tracks and loading the trains. They would have had so much fun together.

I miss you Dad. Give Mom a hug for me.

Friday Fill In - 2/22/2008

1. Returning home is the best thing about traveling.
2. I love a good cup of hot tea when I'm cold.
3. I often use the bus (LOL).
4. I'm reading "Mindless Eating" right now; I am enjoying it, although I find myself nodding in agreement with all the things being said.
5. My weight is something I dislike talking about.
6. When I visited California I most looked forward to seeing the ocean.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to salad, garlic bread, wine, tomorrow my plans include Zachariah's swimming and Sarah and Lindsey spending the night at a friend's home and Sunday, I want to sleep in!

Friday Fill In - 2/15/2008

1. Snowdrops are beautiful, as long as you are inside, have no intention of going anywhere and everyone is safe.
2. I'm going to get organized today
3. "Everlasting Love" is a song whose lyrics have meaning to me.
4. Just one sip and, if it is gin, I get sick.
5. Home is where I'm happiest.
6. I believe that continuous learning is a necessary part of life.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to salad for dinner, tomorrow my plans include Zachariah's swimming and Sunday, I want to work on our vacation scrapbook!

and other things

So far, I have lost 25.6 pounds . . . how cool is that. Unfortunately, I need to multiply that amount by, ummmm, never mind, to get to goal. But, I had set a mini-goal for me on December 4, that of losing 10 pounds by Valentine's Day. I have two days to lose 2 pounds, well not exactly two days to lose two pounds but two days when the end of the mini-challenge ends and I start a new one. My official weigh-in is today at lunch but it has been such a really bizarre thing. I lost weight over the holidays and in that entire time, there was only one weigh in where I gained (a total of .2 pounds).

So, my next mini goal will be another ten pounds by my wedding anniversary, April 18.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had a bitterly cold weekend and yesterday. None of the schools were open, so everyone, except me was home, although Dave did go to school and redid bulletin boards and updated the computerized gradebook.

Today we are supposed to get snow, up to 10 inches depending on where you are in Cleveland. Shades of last February where on February 14, it took me almost five hours to get home from work (gotta remember to put some knitting or some such stuff in my bag . . . even if my hands hurt, I can go slow and get some knitting done).

This is a knitter's blog, sort of

I have to tell you all the truth, and it is hideous, my fingers keep falling asleep. You know that numbing down to the tips. It used to just happen if I had spent tons of time knitting or crocheting. Then it started happening when I would be spending too much time typing. Now it happens when I'm sleeping. Bah humbug and all that other stuff. Give it a rest (which is what the doctor recommended before) hasn't actually done much of anything. I'm thinking that given the alternatives, I will have to give up work (the alternative being giving up knitting).

Ah well, I am going back to the doctor in April and we shall see what she says.

Friday Fill in - 2/8/2008

1. I'm looking forward to sleeping in this weekend (LOL . . . gosh that is so funny).
2. Ireland is a place I always wanted to visit and haven't made it there yet.
3. I've fallen in love with my husband, again . . . he is so darn funny.
4. Six of one, half dozen, whatever.
5. Addiction, every one has an addiction, it is in how they deal with it that proves their mettle.
6. The kids crack me up!
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to fish, tomorrow my plans include bread making and mass and Sunday, I want to sleep in -- see no. 1 above!

Lake effect snow and Lake Erie

A couple of weeks ago, I was explaining to someone from Virginia about lake effect snow. Actually, it was to explain to her why the office may be closed the next day. A day or so later, the Cleveland Plain Dealer had several articles about the Lake and how it impacts our weather in winter. The bottomline is that Lake Erie has to get cold enough to freeze mostly over (it doesn't generally freeze over totally). If it doesn't freeze over, the winds off the lake pick up more moisture and it turns into snow, mostly dumping to the east of Cleveland and on into Buffalo. The following is an excerpt from the Plain Dealer article.

"Freezing season?
Lake Erie (the shallowest and easiest-freezing Great Lake) actually rarely freezes over entirely, but the shallower Western Basin is usually first to cover up.

"The lake actually only freezes over completely about every 30 years," said John Hageman, who owns a Put-in-Bay ice fishing charter company and works for Ohio Sea Grant at the Ohio State University Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island.

But an unfrozen lake can be unlucky for the snow belt. Open waters provide the moisture for lake-effect snowfall that can quickly bury towns like Chardon and other eastern suburbs.

"There's no doubt that a bit of ice off Cleveland will help cut down on the lake-effect snows," Adams said. "But that's not looking likely this year, so we may end up with some heavy events in the snow belt as the winter goes on."

Ice troubles and benefits
Whether Lake Erie freezes or not affects more than just snow-shoveling in Geauga County.
The duration and the extent of an annual ice cover on Lake Erie - and the other four Great Lakes - also has economic and environmental effects.

A cold winter, with thick ice on all the lakes, can severely impede commercial navigation and even interfere with hydropower production, according to government reports.

On the other hand, wide-open waters evaporate more readily, threatening to lower the already diminished water levels of the lakes.

A recent University of Wisconsin study funded by the National Science Foundation extends those concerns to many North American lakes - from local ponds and reservoirs to the Great Lakes.
The study, released last week, suggests that lakes aren't freezing as early or staying frozen as long when compared to records of the last 150 years. "

If you want to read the entire article, it can be found here. Fortunately, I live to the west of Cleveland and generally only have to drive INTO the heavy snow, although last February 14, we got nailed and if you want to see pics of what we dug out that day, go here. (By the way, for some reason blogger isn't allowing me to post pictures . . . so that is why I keep linking to former posts :))

Friday Fill In - 2/1/2008

#57
1. Once I was thin, don't remember when, but I was.

2. I'm tired of being sick -- strep in throat and big toe . . . how weird is that!

3. Today at work I have a conference call and two meetings . . . the only reason I came in . . . and the other people had better show up!

4. What's John Edwards' all about? I had already planned my vote for him . . . to actually cancel out my husband's vote . . . but then his candidate dropped out too!

5. If I make a mistake, I fess up, seriously, why not.

6. When I woke up this morning, I thought the weatherman was wrong. Nope, I think he was off by a couple of hours. We are going to have sloppy, sleety, snowy, ugly stuff.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to doing NOTHING, tomorrow my plans include election training, visiting my family (my nephew is home from Iraq!!!!)* and Sunday, I want to continue working on the vacation scrapbook!

______________
* for whatever reason blogger hasn't been allowing me to post pictures. But here is a post from Christmas 2006 and it has a picture of Erich and Ryan. Erich is the one in the Marines. He is home from Iraq and won't be going back. He is getting out of the Marines in May and will be moving to Florida (he thinks) and going to school. His younger brother Ryan (they are in the same pic) is in the Air Force stationed in Oklahoma. And their older brother Tommy, is in the Navy and is stationed in Pensacola, FL, although he will be moving sometime this summer to either Hawaii, Chicago or, I believe, San Diego. I believe everyone is hoping for Chicago.

Friday Fill In - 1/25/2008

Friday Fill In -- woo hoo -- two weeks in a row that I actually filled this in on a FRIDAY!!

1. My family makes me happy.
2. I would like everyone to just get along, please.
3. Fresh baked bread tastes SO good!
4. Sunday is my favorite day of the week because if I work it right, I won't leave the house all day.
5. My hair is my best feature.
6. We could learn so much from small children . . . looking at things with new eyes . . . what a joy.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Chuck and Michelle coming for dinner, tomorrow my plans include swimming/laundry/Church/making bread/relaxing and Sunday, I will be going to lunch with Janet before she returns to Dallas!

I scored this quiz off of Sandra's blog.

You paid attention during 91% of high school!

85-100% You must be an autodidact, because American high schools don't get scores that high! Good show, old chap!

Do you deserve your high school diploma?
Create a Quiz

It was kind of fun. The only draw back is that it doesn't tell you which ones you got wrong!

7 Random Facts . . . don't feel obliged to carry it on

~ 7 Random Facts Meme ~I've been tagged by Jane to play along.

7 Random Facts...
now these are the rules:

• Link to the person’s blog who tagged you.
• Post these rules on your blog.
• List seven random and/or weird facts about yourself.
• Tag seven random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.
• Let each person know that they have been tagged by posting a comment on their blog (or not . . . I didn't because I think of this like chain mail . . . so respond if you want or not and anyone who wants to do the seven random facts, don't wait to be tagged . . . I'm feeling rebellious!)

My 7 random facts:

1. I am the middle child of seven -- two older sisters and an older brother; two younger sisters and a younger brother
2. I am perpetually early.
3. I met Dave in 1973, but wouldn't date him -- until December 1979 and we got married in April 1980.
4. All three of my kids are adopted (the younger two from the same Mom)
5. I've been at the same company for 35 years
6. I have serious knitting ADHD . . . keep short and sweet it will get done . . . I've been knitting the same sweater for years.
7. My husband has our deep freeze and pantry inventoried . . . to play with his head, I move things . . . its become a game between us.

Okay - I'm NOT tagging anyone . . . if you feel like using it, go for it, otherwise, don't!! LOL

Happy Birthday, Zachariah

Zachariah was born on January 18, 2001. He came to us on June 3, 2001. When he arrived, he was suffering from malnutrition and hadn't had any of his shots.

Today, he is still small but the docs think that given time, he will continue to grow.

He is smart as a whip and loves to read. He is currently reading the Junie B. Jones books and will manage to read one during the car ride with Dad every morning. Plus his comprehension is incredible. He will start laughing and tell Dave, "listen to this . . . . "

He is a joy and funny and we are so very blessed to have this wonderful child as part of our family.

Happy Birthday, Zachariah.

Friday Fill In -- actually on a Friday!!

1. The last compliment I got was from Barbara; she said "you are doing good . . . really, really good."
2. I'm reading Guide for Managing the Global Workforce (how boring is that!).
3. I woke up today and thought Janet moves to Dallas today. I will not cry.
4. Why does the lunch hour go so fast.
5. The last thing I ate was bagel and apple.
6. January... a new start, again.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to eating dinner with Zachariah and Dave (it is Zachariah's 7th birthday), tomorrow my plans include going to the dentist and taking Zachariah to swimming lessons and 4:30 Mass and Sunday, my family is coming over to celebrate Zachariah's birthday!

I've got nothin'

Seriously, I have been so busy with this new job and that by the end of the day my brain is so fried that I cannot do anything but sit and veg . . .

Well, I did clean two cupboards this past weekend. I dumped a bunch of candles (we use candles at dinner but Lindsey keeps switching them in and out and her way of dealing with the "used" ones is to open the cupboard and toss). I also organized all the candle holders. It is quite obvious to me at least that we do not need anymore candles or holders. In fact, I told Dave that if there were ever a power outage, we have enough candles to not only light the way but heat the house for probably a week. I didn't, however, get to my closet. A never ending disaster. I don't know why I think I will ever fit in those clothes, much less want to wear them if I ever do lose the weight. Seriously, who am I kidding!

This past weekend, I also discovered that I did organize my stash and knitting and scrapbooking things sometime in December. I don't recall totally doing it but was incredibly surprised when I opened my hallway dresser to grab the "winter"* tablecloth only to discover that it was filled with yarn. And, the bookshelves look great. I discovered that when I went to put away my latest Interweave magazine and discovered that everything is actually organized on the shelves.

So, did the kids do this. Phhhshshsh . . . not a chance. I know that my darlin' hubby didn't do it because the magazines and books were sorted by date and name, the books were not alphabetized (he is just so predictably anal). I did it but I don't remember exactly when. Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It looks good. I am so impressed.

The problem is that for Whoduknit, we are doing a KAL and I cannot find my knitting needles. NONE. ZERO. ZILCH. On Monday evening, when I discovered the phenomena of the beautiful organization, I couldn't find them and assumed that I must have left my Options needles at work (even though I had brought home all my knitting stuff when I moved into my office. So this morning (yes, it is Thursday), I went through all the drawers, boxes (did manage to empty two of them) and cannot find a single needle. Well, actually, that isn't true, I do have the needles from Jane that she made the flowers out of.



But, I didn't even check the size because I didn't want to take them apart.

My big fear is that my needles got put in with our Christmas stuff which was just hauled up to the attic this past Sunday. Gee, maybe I should just by some more of the Knitpick's Harmony needles . . .

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*Winter tablecloth as opposed to fall (which is orange and brown and has fall leaves on it) or Christmas (I have several of those . . . and bought a new one in the post-holiday sales) or summer (which is cream). The winter one is light green with matching dark green napkins.

Go figure

Yesterday morning over breakfast, her second for the day (so far totalling 3 bowls of cereal (before church) and two biscuits, bacon, scrambled eggs and lemonade at Bob Evans (after church)), Lindsey, my lovely 13 year old, announced that her goal for 2008 was to have a "six pack" by the end of summer. She is currently on swim team. They swim six days a week. Besides their meets which are generally two or three a week, they swim on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoon and Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, they swim from 5:45a to 7:00a . . . on Saturday, they can sleep in and only swim from 7:00a to 9:00a).

So, she asked me how to do this. I know, I know, I am obese, consider organizing my yarn stash as serious exercise, and yet she asks me about abs of steel. Go figure. I said eating correctly (more fruits and vegetables) and exercising. Obviously, she presumed I made a mistake, made a face only a 13 year could accomplish and said that "I'll look online."

Great fun. Before dinner, she checked online and was totally bummed because everything she found said that the only way to get a "six-pack" was to eat correctly (minimum of 8 servings of fruits/vegetables per day) and to exercise. She then proceeded to eat two pieces of chicken, 3 potato wedges (roasted potatoes - not her favorite because they just aren't as good as fries), 1/4 cup of brocolli and two bisquits.

By the way, she is 5'1" and weighs 101. Frankly, she looks great. The swimming has toned her arms and legs. She loves swimming the 500 meter and since the beginning of the season has shaved 132 seconds (and incredible feat) off of her time and ended up in second place for the event at this past weekend's meet, only losing by 2 seconds.

So, the question is why does she want a six pack . . . cause it will increase her muscle mass and she will be able to eat more cereal for breakfast. Gotta love the logic of a healthy 13 year old. If she wasn't so terribly annoying sometimes, she would be great fun to be around.