Adventures Of My Creativity

Wow....

2010-05-01T12:59:00.002-04:00

I HAVE been away from my blog in a long time....

Life just gets in the way doesn't it.

Where I stored all of my soapmaking supplies was flooded, TONS of items ruined and I haven't had the heart to replace anything or to even make anything since then. I even had someone else clean up the area because it was too depressing for me to even so that.

Knitting, well that is a horse of a different color. I took a break from that too because of my life. I JUST got back to it again for the umpteenth time. I have been being boring and just making simple hats for co-workers. Various shades, various, yarns, etc. to try to get that creative energy flowing.

Miss Sunshine is doing as well as to be expected. She is still at the school that offers the ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) services. She still has prize winning moments and as my mom puts it, becomes unplugged often. Her team of specialists (BSC, TSS, MT, Speech) really work at helping her and me with getting Miss Sunshine to function daily. It Can be exhausting but, it does have its rewards.

With all this, The Princess has shown so colors and has been diagnosed with ODD (oppositional defiance disorder) and Impulse control issues. She had to be removed from her regular school and now attends a behavior support class. Her IQ is still off the charts so the school district offers her more of a 1-on-1 education daily and sends her to a gifted program 2.5 hours a week.

I have done a lot of escapism in the form of reading non-stop. Books, fan-fiction, the princess's writings... keeps my mind in an alternative world.

Work exists and keeps me busy and the girls do come there twice a week while I work so it helps.

Perhaps I will have more to post here soon. Perhaps not but, I just wanted tog et some thoughts down for now.

Without Her Sister

2008-08-03T09:22:00.002-04:00

Miss Sunshine doesn't really see to mind nights without her sister. She gets Mom all to her sister. Now she gets to watch what she wants without a fight and later she gets to have her Ita (maternal grandmother) and Pop-pop all to herself.

Miss Sunshine loves her big sister and she is one of her favorite people but, some times, she loves a mini-vacation away. If it is longer then she does start asking when is she coming home.

Fun Birthday Party

2008-08-02T22:14:00.001-04:00

The girls went to a very fun birthday party today for one of their female cousin's today. It was a Princess themed party where they got dressed in Princess costumes and went through a story about a princess, had their faces painted, went on a scavenger hunt and had cake and juice. It wasn't over the top but very cute.

Although it was a bit on the young side for the Princess, she did go along with everything especially after I took away her book and make her look at what was going on around her. Miss Sunshine, however, she put on the dress and for an hour insisted she get her face painted (they mentioned it in the beginning and didn't do it till almost the end) but other than that, didn't do much else. She entertained my Aunt and Uncle and my new baby cousin, had cake, of course, but not quite the party for her. You win some, you lose some, but, I think she did have fun in her own way.

The Princess then left for the Poconos with her dad. Miss Sunshine doesn't go anywhere with out her Mommy.

Miss Tina

2008-08-01T06:50:00.000-04:00

The Princess is so excited today! She gets to take Tina into camp today and show her off. For those of you who forget, Tina is our Russian Tortoise.

We are already busy this morning making a travel home for her. A box, some hay, some food and of course some treats Dandelions.

I hope Tina makes it through the day ;-)

Miss Sunshine's School

2008-07-30T10:10:00.001-04:00

I got a call yesterday and found out all of Miss Sunshine's school testing is complete and her report is written.

They are recommending that she go to the other school with the Autism program. Yes, she will get a bus. Everyone keeps asking me that. I am not sure why but it seems like the first question that pops out. I will know more next week when I meet with the psychologist.

1812 Overture

2008-07-23T07:11:00.000-04:00

Took the Princess for the first time to hear the 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky with live cannons at the end of the piece last night.

SHE LOVED IT!

It is, of course, one of my all time favorites as well

She loved the fireworks dispaly after as well

Side Note

2008-07-13T09:07:00.000-04:00

The Princess actually just reminded me I haven't knittedin a while and when was I going to finish we dolls "official" dress?

Wow when your kid notices you don't knit you are in trouble LOL

PS Miss Sunshine is actually been usually my needles as swords... that is how "rusty" my needles are... sigh....

America's Birthday

2008-07-03T06:03:00.001-04:00

The Princess is going to the Poconos with her father and grandmother for the long holiday weekend but, Miss Sunshine wants to stay home with Mommy. lately she does want to stray to far from me.

We did get invited to a few BBQs, and we plan to spend a day in our PJs.

The Princess does need a holiday away from her sister. she is a TERRIFIC big sister but when you are ask of so much you do deserve a break.

I won't go see firework with Miss Sunshine since she hates loud noises but, I hope the princess does. She loves them

Question of the Week #2 for SP 12

2008-06-27T15:56:00.004-04:00

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

For the first 14 years of my life, I spent pretty much every summer at my Abuelos house in Cali Colombia South America. I couldn't wait to go!! It was such a different life style there and such a different climate as well. I would get to see my Mother's side of the family, the ENTIRE side, all of my Aunts, uncles, cousins, distant cousins, friends, etc. Practice my Spanish, go to my favorite places and eat my favorite foods. Certain scents and pictures can quickly bring back a memory for me.

I haven't been back there in over 10 years, but just writing this out brings back happy memories of happy times.

Question of the Week for SP 12

2008-06-16T14:50:00.002-04:00

Question of the Week: What is your favorite summertime drink??

Answer of the Week: For the Summer I love fruit flavored lemonades like fresh strawberry lemonade over ice -- YUM!!

I could always go for a frozen lemonade too :-D

Graduation!!

2008-06-12T16:29:00.004-04:00

Okay, so it really isn't a graduation, per se, but, Miss Sunshine graduated from Pre-school yesterday!! What an amazing accomplishment, for us anyway.

It has been such a topsy turvy year for us with Miss Sunshine and to end it with such an amazing end, I was just shedding tears of joy. She actually did all of the class songs at their ceremony with a little bit of extra guidance from the teacher.

For those that don't know, Miss Sunshine was diagnosed with PDD-NOS (it is an Autism Spectrum disorder) back in November and it had been a Roller Coaster ride for us ever since. We are still on it, especially with not knowing where our school district is going to place her for kindergarten this fall. They are still attempting to test her even though her last day of school was officially today.

She is an amazing little girl who tries to hold it all together for precious moments like her graduation and to steal a few words from one of her graduation songs, she truly was a "Superstar" yesterday!

SP 12 - Yes, I signed up because I need Cheering Up

2008-06-04T19:29:00.003-04:00

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like? Believe it or not, my favorite yarn to knit with is STILL Blue Sky Cotton dyed or organic. I just LOVE it. I also love Pakucho organic. On the top of my do not like list is any animal fiber like wool, mohair, cashmere including silk since I am HIGHLY allergic. Next in line is the fun furs since I think I have overkilled on those

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in? My straights are in a nice rolled hand-sewn case. My dpns and circulars are in a box, a nice box with a clasp mind you but a box nonetheless

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced? I have technically been knitting since I am nine and was taught by my grandmother, Great Aunt and Grandfather's first cousin. Not exactly sure what I consider myself in terms of skill level. There are some things I have tried a long tine ago but just don't like to do so I don't.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list? No

5. What's your favorite scent? I like citrus scents but since I am allergic to most perfumes I am pretty picky

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy? I have a terrible sweet tooth and LOVE milk chocolate

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin? I make handmade soap and other toiletries. I also do a ton of crafts with my children. You'd never get me on a bicycle in a class. Oh you meant yarn!! No, I don't spin yarn. Tall tales maybe... ;-)

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD) I have a very eclectic taste in music from classical Vivaldi to Billy Joel/Elton John type to Alternative. My car stereo doesn't play MP3s but my computer does.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand? My favorite color is purple, my oldest daughter loves pink (prefers hot pink to baby pink) and my youngest daughter loves lime green. Colors I can't stand? hmmm puce

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets? Married, two daughters (the Princess is 7 and Miss Sunshine is 5). We have both a Russian Tortoise named Tina and one dwarf hamster named Ben. Miss Sunshine was diagnosed with an Autism spectrum disorder about 6 months ago which tends to consume a lot of our time.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos? I do wear hats in the winter and in the sun. I am not a huge scarf wearer but it could be because I have never made myself one for myself. Not a mitten or a poncho wearer.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit? Right now, projects that I can get no delay of gratification, i.e. quick and easy and done in a day or two.

13. What are you knitting right now? A baby hat

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts? I LOVE handmade gifts!! Rarely get them except from my daughters

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic? Depends on the project but being that Miss Sunshine still has the tendency to pull out my work, circulars work a bit better at guarding against that. I so much prefer bamboo. Rosewood actually if you have it ;-)

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift? Technically yes but, they were confiscated by a knitting friend and now she winds all my yarn for me. (I had one too many "accidents")

17. How old is your oldest UFO? Define old ;-)

18. What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving. There is no religious aspect to it, our family gets together and is thankful for everything we have, my oldest and I collect cans and donated then to a local food bank, we also donate to a local organization that prepares meals to people living with AIDS, and some of my best holidays memories happened at Thanksgiving

19. Is there anything that you collect? Anything and everything Goofy, as in Disney (you should see our family room), as just added Tinkerbell to that because Miss Sunshine likes the little pixie. Yarn, of course!!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have? I am always on the lookout for an all-in-one sweater pattern or dress pattern for my daughters. Even though I can sew seams and dare I say good at it, I don't like to do it

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn? I am working on my lace

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements? Sort of. I wear a size 8 shoe

23. When is your birthday? October 3rd

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID? Yes, just Sharon ;-)

It Has Been a Long Time

2008-05-19T11:33:00.006-04:00

Over a Month Since I have Written, WOW!

Little Miss Sunshine turned 5 on April 9Th and she thought the entire month was her birthday. She expected cake and presents the entire month. Whew, that is exhausting! We did not do too much for her birthday other than a family birthday dinner and I brought green cupcakes into her class at school. Of course green, where you expecting something different?

Transitioning to a new schedule with my working has been difficult all the way around but, I think the girls and I are finally okay with it. Both girls spend 3 days with my Mom and my Mom takes Miss Sunshine to all her therapy sessions which works out very well. The other two days, Miss Sunshine stays till 5:30 in school and my MIL picks her up on one of those days and I get to pick her up on the other which makes her very happy. My MIL gets The Princess off the bus those two days and she seems to be okay with it but, she waits for the days she is with my Mom or me to do her homework.

What is great about these new arrangements is that the girls and I eat dinner together at a table as a family more often.

However, now that I step away from Miss Sunshine, I can now see more clearly what others see. At the end of April I went to visit this school in our school district that is a regular school but, they have an Autism program for kids on the spectrum. At first I was resistant before I went to go see it but once I was there, it made perfect sense for Miss Sunshine. All her therapy would be right there. She could have the best of all worlds. Now they have put out the carrot, lets see if they will place her there.

The Princess is thriving!! She has had some rough spots but, I think we are over her hurdles and and she is ready to take on what lies ahead. She is definitely not like any first or second grader I have ever known and remember I work for an after school program. She is Mom's little helper. The day before Mother's Day she and I spent the day together doing a little shopping, going to lunch together, painting some pottery and just having quality Mother and daughter day. I try to do more of that kind of thing for her knowing her sister takes up a lot of time.

As for me, knitting is still on the back burner. Every so often, I take out some of my favorite yarns and look them over or look up a favorite pattern and say "YES!!" I am going to knit you one of these days. I will get my schedule in gear one of these days. Warmer weather is coming and if it stays drying long enough, I can start taking the girls to the park more often on the weekends. I can then go back to knitting in the park. Till then it is only reading patterns and thinking about knitting.

We have a New Family Member

2008-04-02T13:50:00.003-04:00

Say hello to Benjamin Franklin, Ben for short. He is a Siberian Dwarf Hamster we adopted at our local Petco from a local shelter. He is enjoying life at our home and gets fed very well and a whole lot of love from both the princess and Miss Sunshine. Miss Sunshine does keep trying to set him free but we find him since he know how good he has it and has a favorite hiding spot already in the girls room.

Tina, the tortoise, finds Ben rather amusing. We have let her sit next to his shelter and watch him run around. They both share some of the same taste in foods (lettuce, hay, etc) and they both like to dig but that is about where the similarities end.

Now to just get Miss Sunshine to stop asking for a parrot ;-)

April is Autism Awareness Month!!

2008-04-01T15:24:00.002-04:00

Philadelphia has a lot of activities going on too. A 76ers game this weekend. A Phillies game on April 19th. A day at the zoo. All in the name of Autism awareness.

Of course you know that the Princess and I will be walking on September 20th for the Walk Now for Autism and you can join our team online through our webpage at http://www.walknowforautism.org/. Donations can also be mailed to Autism Speaks using the donation form located on our page.

Our team name is Little Miss Sunshine, named for our own Little Miss Sunshine of course. I can't believe that it is just about 6 months ago that she was diagnosed. She has made great strides with her therapy. She still has a very long way to go but, we are all so very proud of her.

Please join us in our fight against autism. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of the more than 1 million Americans living with autism today. Follow this link to visit the team page for Little Miss Sunshine. Follow this link to visit My page. Thank you for just even looking.

Help get the word out about Autism and make a difference today!!

The New Job

2008-03-27T14:17:00.002-04:00

So knitting takes another back seat....

I have been working part, part time for an after school program for going on three years now and I get a call from my boss who is also my friend on Tuesday. She sounded kind of upset and asked if I could come in early. I was like uh oh. She said not to worry it wasn't bad for me, it could be a good thing.

Her assistant was leaving and the person they had hired to replace her came in for one day and decided it wasn't for her either. Could I pretty, pretty please fill in?!?!?! She would try to make it as flexible as possible for as possible especially because of the little ones and Miss Sunshine. How could I resist the opportunity?

My Mom and MIL are going help out with child duty and I am shifting some things around. I am going to see how it works out on a temporary basis to see if I like the working on a fuller time basis and how the girls handle it especially Miss Sunshine. Right now the Princess isn't handling too well, actually.

Perhaps the knitting needs to go to work with me....

My Favorite

2008-03-18T22:31:00.002-04:00

Did you have any doubt? Blue Sky Alpacas Dyed Cotton is currently my favorite cotton yarn.

It is 100% organically grown. You really have to love that and then it is dyed in over 30 different shades. I love Pickle, Orchid and Thistle (shown here).

Weight: 100 grams

Approx: 150 yds / 137 meters

Needle Size: 7–9 US / 4.5–5.5 mm

Gauge: 4–5 sts per inch

*A suggested gauge only. Works beautifully with large or small needles but i tend to use the larger needles most of the time.

Usually sells for approx. $9.95 per hank

It is suggested to hand wash the yarn but, I have a hand wash cycle on my washing machine which I have used and it comes out very nicely.

The yarn is extremely soft, doesn't split while you knit but it does stretch out. If you are a tight knitter that is a good thing but if you knit loose, keep that in mind.

I have substituted this for worsted weight yarns very well and made hats, sweaters, and layette items with this yarn.

The first frog is easy but if frogging repeatedly be careful.

Highly recommend this as a cotton yarn for anyone ready to stray from Peaches and Creme or Sugar N Cream.

Monday... Monday...

2008-03-17T18:09:00.002-04:00

The Princess is on Spring vacation but Miss Sunshine is not until Wednesday. Well, technically Thursday, Wednesday is parent teacher conferences but since I speak to Miss Sunshine's teacher practically every day, I don't really need a conference, now do I?

The Princess and her dad went Snow tubing on Saturday and Miss Sunshine stayed back, which was fine by me. Snow and I do not get along. It was a good thing though because Miss Sunshine had a back-slide and had a "classical Autism" weekend. The Princess had BLAST though which I am so grateful for.

I know that there is a coffee and yarn swap coming up but, believe it or not, I am going to sit that one out. I am probably going to sit a few knitting swaps out. My last great swap pal was Barbara and although she spoiled the girls and me rotten, I haven't even had time to post an elaborate thank you to her. She does know how thankful I am, of course, since I have thanked her often in emails but, I have been oft been broached boorishly that I need to post and so here it is publicly.

One of my closest friend who moved to Texas last year persuaded me to enter a soap swap. I sheepishly did that. The Princess, who is a budding young soap maker, wants to make the entry so she is very excited.

I am planning on taking the Princess to the Philadelphia Art Museum on Wednesday. She has never been and it has been a long time for me. I hope she enjoys it as much as I did the first time I went, roughly the same age she is now.

Knitting? What is that?

2008-03-14T07:48:00.002-04:00

Okay, so since I haven't been blogging, I am OBVIOUSLY not getting any knitting done. I have three very lovely little projects sitting in their lovely little bags begging to be picked up but I either don't have the time or the energy or have a sweet little ball of Sunshine jumping on my stomach saying "Mommy no sticks play, read, chase!" till 11 PM at night.

The good news is with all the changes I have been making to Little Miss Sunshine's life she is talking and making herself understood a lot more. The bad news is, she is coming out of her shell and wants to tell me EVERYTHING and be with me from the time she wakes till the time she passes out (11 PM). Don't get me wrong, I don't want things to go back to the way they were, NEVER!, I am finally seeing some progress and of course I want more and more some knitting time would be nice too.

I am going to have to figure out a way to balance all of this which is a struggle right now. I mean, when did I forget swap deadlines or not find the time to blog in a long time? I am going to try to get my frustrations out on Miss Sunshine's Blog so, if you want to know what goes on in that wonderful world, check it out often. It is a wacky world and I wish I could get off the ride.

Until I get back to knitting, I am not sure what to blog about. Any suggestions? I could review some of my yarns ;-)

Long Time....

2008-03-06T07:28:00.002-05:00

Life gets in the way of "things" sometimes and such is what goes on here.

We are finally getting some movement in Miss Sunshine's progress and have her IEP written, it is just getting them to provide the services in enough time before she enters kindergarten this fall and we want her in a regular classroom if at all possible (with an aid of course)

I haven't really been doing much knitting and am slow in my swaps (if you can believe that) but I am definitely not going to leave my partners hanging.

I did finish a hat for my Mom to match Miss Sunshine's hat.

It is made with Blue Sky Alpaca Dyed Cotton. Using my favorite yarn always cheers me up!

Thank You Cocoa Pal

2008-02-17T09:57:00.004-05:00

Thank you, Ashley for my cocoa swap box. Unfortuntely, my little miss sunshine ran off with most of it including the little Goofy who now resides with the stuffed animal farm. I did snap a picture of the yarn though.

It is 100% Bamboo and a pale pink. Not sure what I will do with it yet.

Walk Now for Autism!

2008-02-15T14:16:00.002-05:00

The Princess and I are participating in Walk Now for Autism to help find a cure for autism for all the children effected but especially for our own Little Miss Sunshine (and that is the name of our team too!).

Autism is the second most common developmental disorder in the United States affecting one in every 150 children born today including Miss Sunshine. Despite some promising discoveries, the cause of autism is unknown and a cure does not exist. Research is crucial. Every 20 minutes another child is diagnosed with autism. Not only must we find ways to improve the quality of life for children and adults with autism, but we also must find a cure, and soon. Walk Now for Autism is our chance to make a difference in the fight against autism by raising money for autism research and heightening public awareness.

Please join us in our fight as we raise funds for essential research. The Princess and I will be walking on September 20th and would like you to support those affected by autism. You can donate to Walk Now for Autism or join our team online through our webpage at http://www.walknowforautism.org/. Donations can also be mailed to Autism Speaks using the donation form located on our page. Our team name is Little Miss Sunshine, named for our own Little Miss Sunshine of course.

Please join us in our fight against autism. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of the more than 1 million Americans living with autism today.

Follow this link to visit the team page for Little Miss Sunshine. Follow this link to visit My page.

Thank you for just even looking. Thank you even more for donating!!!

AUTISM SPEAKS!!!

Anyone Have the Stich N Bitch Page A day Calender?

2008-02-08T08:06:00.001-05:00

I just found out on Wednesday that the knitting group that i go to is in the Stich N Bitch Page A day Calender! how cool is that?! So if you have it, go to the Month of August and I think we are on the 20th.

Oh and yes, I am in the picture on the left side standing. At the time when the picture was taken, it was before I cut my hair for Locks of Love so my hair is very long. The group is called MontCo. Sit and Knit and the group organizer wrote a very nice group description.

Pretty cool!

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap Topic of the Week

2008-02-07T07:41:00.000-05:00

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap topic of the week....

Please post a picture of your yarn stash for making dishcloths and the notions you use on them. So, 2 pics 1 of dishcloth yarn stash and 1 of your notions you use for making dishcloths.

Well that is pretty simple....

Here is most of my dishcloth cotton stash. What I could find in one place anyway.

I didn't feel like taking a new picture so some where in there are several pairs of size seven needles and one pair missing because, of course, they are currently making a dishcloth.

Even More Hats!

2008-02-01T17:50:00.000-05:00

You would think I would move on to bigger and better things being that I have been knitting for a very long, long time. Nope. I get requests predominately for washcloths, scarves and as the title suggests, hats.

The other day the Princess, Miss Sunshine and I went over to my Mom's house with all three of us sporting hats I had made and my Mom asked where was hers. Um, I had made her a hat two years ago does she need a new one? Of course she does!

So now I am busy making my Mom a hat using my favorite yarn Blue Sky Cotton in the color Thistle. She wants me to make her a hat similar to the one I recently made Miss Sunshine so that is what Mom is getting.

I did twist the stitches so I did have to cast on twice today. How fun is that?!?

I hope I can finish it before my parents return from their trip

TAG you're it!

2008-01-31T22:15:00.000-05:00

Ah yes, another tag meme' got to love it... I haven't done one of these in a long time and I will most likely not pass it one since I am late running off to some where or procrastinating calling a therapist so here goes... oh I was tagged by Alaina so please go stop by her blog and leave her tons of comments!

Here is what I have to do....List 7 Random Facts about Me. Da rules say they must be posted to your blog. Link to the person’s blog who tagged you (did that).List seven random and/or weird facts about yourself. Tag seven random people (yea don't think am gonna do that) 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 and also so they can look at your blog and not tag the same people all over again!

1. My favorite animal is a giraffe. I collect wooden sculptures of them, have gone to the Philly zoo to sketch them and have even done some painting of them. I think Miss Sunshine even likes them since she keeps selecting a stuffed Giraffe at her pre-school

2. I have this penchant for what we around here call "crap" TV especially now that there is a writer's strike. I watch Project Runway and Top Chef, not so crappy but I also watch America's Next Top Model, Make Me a Super Model, Millionaire Matchmaker Rock of Love (ok that one is very rare) ok you get the picture

3. If you have every been in a swap with me, you know all my regular allergies but what you don't know is that I am also allergic to Beer. Yes, go ahead, feel sorry for me

4. When I was younger I wanted to be an eye doctor till I dissected the frog for the first time in 7th grade. ewww

5. Until I had graduated from college I had never visited my state's capital city (Harrisburg)

6. I am the oldest granddaughter on my Mom's side of the family and am named for my maternal great-grandmother and The Princess is the oldest granddaughter on her maternal side and is named for her maternal great-grandmother.

7. I still have a magic 8 ball that my girls now play with

Okay that is all she wrote!!

Rough Day Yesterday

2008-01-31T20:40:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a rough one all around. The Princess had to be picked up from school, strep throat. She at least stayed long enough for the book fair and we bought a few books. Had to go to the doctor and everything. That was fun with the two of them in tow.

Miss Sunshine also had occupational therapy which started off terrible and you can read about that here. Then when she usually is okay with going in herself almost 99.9% of the time, I had to be there the entire time with her. I bet because of what happened in the waiting room. Her therapy session isn't as good when I am in the room with her. At least she got something it.

Then when we got home she was a mess all around as if she never had any therapy, ever. Running around, throwing things, jumping, flapping, mumbling, the works. I felt terrible for her and the princess because the princess was sick. My husband had the audacity of not only asking what was for dinner but wanting since he was leaving for New Orleans he thought we needed some grown up time. Yea right. Grown up time, what is that? The kids were attached to my hip and Miss Sunshine even fell asleep literally on top of me. I barely had time to finish the baby sweater I am making for a friend who I think either delivered today or will tomorrow since will be inducing her.

Happy 43rd Anniversary to My Parents!

2008-01-30T07:53:00.000-05:00

Yes, my parents got married one day after my Mom's birthday. I guess my dad didn't want to be able to forget either one. And yes, they got married in January even though my Mom hates the winter and the snow so as my family tradition goes.....

Happy anniversary, happy anniversary, happy anniversary, HAPPY anniversary! Happy, happy, happy , happy happy anniversary. Happy, happy, happy , happy happy anniversary!

Many, Many, Many more to come!!!

Hot Cocoa Swap Question Of The Week

2008-01-29T19:57:00.000-05:00

For the Hot Cocoa Swap the topic of the week....

What is your most memorable vacation? Where did you go? What made it memorable?

When I was 12, my family went on what I still to this day call a whirlwind vacation. My oldest cousin was getting married in Panama City , Panama during the summer so we started there. We saw the Panama Canal which was incredible, a once in a lifetime experience! From there, we fly this mini 8 seater plane to a small Island off the coast called Contadora. We spent close to two weeks there with some cousins deep sea fishing, sun bathing, snorkeling, you name it. After that we went to my Mom's home Country of Colombia for a while. Two of my other cousins were graduating from high school. We had been to Colombia many times, in fact every summer since birth practically. After some touring and visiting of friends and relatives, we flew back to the states to Miami to visit more friends and relatives and ended the summer with an extended trip to Disney World.

Definitely a vacation to remember!

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap Topic of the Week

2008-01-29T19:44:00.000-05:00

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap topic of the week....

There are many people who ADORE receiving hand-knit or crochet items; but there are just as many who have no appreciation whatever of how much love, work, and time goes into a hand-made item. Share a story of a hand-made gift you gave to someone and how it worked out - good, bad, or ugly!

Practically ALL of my knit items are gifted away. I rarely ever keep any of them myself except perhaps the rare hat or once in a blue moon the rare scarf and then those get stolen by my daughters in the end anyway. I have even been known to sell a washcloth and soap bag or two with my handmade soaps :-) It pays for the yarn LOL.

I do have one story that isn't really bad, per say, but she never put the sweater on her baby. She thought the sweater was too precious to be worn by her spitting up, throwing up, crying little infant so instead she bought one of those preservation boxes and put it in that with the card I had made and hung it in the babies room as wall decoration instead. I told her it was made to be worn and to be seen and could be washed in the washing machine but, she refused. She insisted it was too gorgeous, the yarn was simply to incredible and must have taken me too long to make to be wasted and she wanted it to be kept and a remembrance. It still hangs in the child's room.

Happy Birthday Mom!!

2008-01-29T07:51:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to the woman whom I owe everything to including life!! Mom has been a GREAT help to me through everything this past year with my illness and Miss Sunshine so I wish her a very, very happy birthday and many, many more to come. I know how old she turns today but let's just say she is celebrating an anniversary of her 29Th birthday.

Being that this week is restaurant week here is Philadelphia, my dad is planning on taking Mom out every night of the week (especially since their wedding anniversary is tomorrow) so the girls and I celebrated with her on Saturday with a yummy dinner and birthday cake of course.

Fans of Billy Joel

2008-01-29T07:45:00.001-05:00

If you are a fan of Billy Joel's, you need to check out this wonderful Presentation. This guy put pictures and words to "We Didn't start the Fire" It is just amazing!

Hot Cocoa Swap Question Of The Week

2008-01-24T08:15:00.000-05:00

For the Hot Cocoa Swap the question of the week....

What is the most 'random' memory you have from your childhood? I know it's not knitting content, but I love learning about the little quirks and interesting things about people!

Yes, that is a bit of a quirky question and so open ended. I wasn't even sure where I wanted to go with my answer. I mean there are so many 'random' memories from my childhood.

I remember once going to this children's clothing store with my Mom in the very late 70's and the sales lady kept wanting to show me this bright colorful clothes, corduroy pants, out of control sweaters . All I wanted was black. Mind you I was something like 8 or 9. I wanted black pants, black dresses an black tops. I must have been in a mood or something. My Mom finally relented and got me one of each but, still bought the bright stuff so I'd "fit it".

Of Course a few years later the style was basic black and I told my Mom, I told you do ;-)

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap Topic of the Week

2008-01-21T18:09:00.000-05:00

Another swap, another topic of the week. "Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap topic of the week....

Dishrag. Dishcloth. Face cloth. I've seen folks get all fired up in forums when someone refers to their knit or crochet creation as a dishrag, as that's somehow offensive to them! When you're working on yours, what do you call them? Also, is there a difference between a dishrag and a dishcloth? How bout a facecloth? Are they all really the same thing?

It is all one and the same to me. I actually call it a washcloth because I us them with the handmade soaps I make. If you use it for what ever purpose, what difference does it make what you call it? In fact, to be honest, when I first started making them, I made a variety of those fancy patterns and kept them in a container till I had enough squares to make a baby blanket then sewed them all together to make a very adorable baby blanket for a friend. Now I just make "cloths" to give with my soaps.

I'm Back With and FO and a WIP

2008-01-21T11:26:00.000-05:00

I had a great weekend with some knitting friends. We chatted, knitted, drank wine, knitted, ate, knitted, slept, knitted... you get the picture.

I finished Miss Sunshine's green hat and she was very happy with it. However, she wouldn't model it so, I got the Princess to do it.

The pattern comes from a book called "101 Designers One-Skein Wonders" The pattern is called Child's Hat with Pom Pom and it is on page 111. I used Lion Brand Nature's Choice Organic Cotton to make the hat because of course I could not use the wool the designer recommended.

I next casted on a cardigan for my good friend's baby who is to be born I think at the end of January beginning of February. The pattern is called Easy Peasy Cardigan by Little Knits which you can download here. I am already on the second side of it and then all I need is to sew up the seams. When I have a picture, I will post it.

The Princess would like to work on her blog, so time to sign off. Have a great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Do something for your community today!

Knitting Weekend

2008-01-18T11:25:00.000-05:00

Heading off for some knitting fun and relaxation. The girls are spending the weekend with my parents which they are so very much looking forward to doing.

See you when I get back and I hope I have some FOs or at least some projects started

Inches & Purls Hat

2008-01-17T12:38:00.000-05:00

Ah, yes, another baby hat for yet another to be born baby

100% cotton Lily Sugar N Cream Twist on US7 DPNs. Waiting room knitting at its best

Hot Cocoa Swap Question Of The Week

2008-01-16T10:37:00.000-05:00

For the Hot Cocoa Swap the question of the week....

Now that we're in the thick of 'Winter'... has your knitting changed to match the season? Are you moving on from dishcloths, and tank tops to afghans, hats and mittens? Has your yarn changed from silk or cotton to wool, superwash or heavier cottons?

My knitting doesn't change in the winter. I still have a gazillion babies to knit for, I still don't like long, intricate projects that take a long time to knit and I still can't knit with animal fibers so there isn't much to change ;-) Miss Sunshine wants a new hat that is 100% green (her current one is 50% pink, 50% green)

I'd like to try Rowan Calmer, which is a blend of cotton and acrylic, this winter. Other than that, status quo

Needle Thief Strikes Again!

2008-01-14T13:06:00.000-05:00

She might be young. She might be cute. She might look innocent. She might have the most adorable smile you have ever seen. She might give warm hugs, sweet kisses and smell like chocolate chip cookies but, she knitting's worst enemy.

That is right, Little Miss Sunshine strikes again! She has been on hiatus for quite some time but those double pointed needles sticking out of my knitting bag must have look oh so good to her and RIP! GRAB! RUN! Out it went. Grrrrr... Baby hat to fix. Thankfully (or unfortunately) I am too used to this and fixing was oh so easy.

Miss Sunshine is angry with me because she doesn't like her pink and green hat anymore. She wants a 100% green hat and she wants it yesterday. She won't wear it. Nor will she wear the yellow one nor the Raspberry colored ones I have either, "Those are Princess colored!!".

Guess what project is skipping ahead of all others and going on the needles next? I guess my cousin and good friend who are having babies at the end of January/beginning of February will have to wait because Miss Sunshine comes first!!

"Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap Questionnaire

2008-01-11T08:01:00.000-05:00

Yet, another swap questionnaire for the swap addicted this time for the "Defeat the Winter Doldrums" Dishcloth Swap a favorite swap where the name changes but the concept does not.

1. Do you knit, crochet, or do both? Knit Only

2. What types of needles do you enjoy using for making dishcloths? I prefer Bamboo or other wooden needles

3. What types of cotton do you enjoy using for making dishcloths? Is there any that you've been wanting to try? I like Peaches & Creme, Sugar N Cream and even love using KnitPicks Shine Worsted

4. What color(s) are your kitchen and bath decorated in (if any)? My Kitchen is very neutral being that it is white with very little blue trimming. Same with my bathroom

5. What are your favorite colors for yarns? Least favorite? Favorite are purple, pink, lime green. Least favorites at the moment are neon bright

6. Do you like Winter, or do you count the days until it ends? I cannot stand winter especially the snow and ice. I count the days still spring. I would miss the seasons changing but why can't we just skip the winter one? ;-)

7. What's your favorite way to brighten your day when you're down in the dumps? I'd do something fun with my daughters

8. What is your favorite treat to indulge in and when your down in the dumps? A really good milk chocolate. Chocolate can always cheer you up

9. Do you drink coffee? Tea? Cocoa? All three but not at the same time, LOL. It depends on my mood which one is necessary

10. If you could take a vacation starting tomorrow and go anywhere for one week and money were no object, where would you go and what would you do? Right now I would love to get away from the cold but since I have been sick, I just need a break from the every day so perhaps some place where I can get some rest and relaxation

11. Do you have any allergies or aversions your pal should be aware of? Ah the allergy question. Well for starters, if you are going to send food, not an allergy but just make sure it is vegetarian, it will make it easier on yourself, trust me. Second, I am allergic to animal fiber yarns like wool, mohair, cashmere, etc. I just stay away from all animal yarns including silk. Check the labels to make sure they aren't in any blends too. I am also allergic to lanolin and silicone (you’d find them in body products), cats, most dogs, cigarette smoke and fresh cut grass. Aren't you glad you asked?

Which Fiber Are You? None of The Above

2008-01-10T10:54:00.000-05:00

I get this email newsletter, Knitter's Review, and the writer of that newsletter wrote a book, "The Knitter's Book of Yarn". In support of her book, Potter Craft put together a quiz to help knitters determine which fiber you are.

Well, here is where I have to protest. Your final choices Mohair, Angora, Camel, Wool or Odd Ball. I am none of the above!! Um, where is Cotton? Bamboo? Soy? If these are the only types of fibers this author thinks about and writes about she is missing a great many options and a HUGE target audience. Forget people like me who are allergic what about all the vegan and vegetarian knitters?

This isn't the first time this writer forgets the non-animal fiber knitters and it makes me think she is alternative fiber-phobic.

How Do I feel?

2008-01-09T13:01:00.000-05:00

Well, it has been three very long weeks since I was diagnosed with Pneumonia. No, not walking Pneumonia, the real thing. The same thing Eminem (AKA Marshall Mathers) spent time in the hospital for over the New Year's holiday for with complications and he is younger than me. I had two chest x-rays, spent some "quality" time in a suburban emergency room, took 10 days worth "fast acting" antibiotics and was prescribed Oxicodone, Motrin and Codeine and had chest pain that felt like I was having heart attack. I wouldn't wish this on anyone.

I am definitely feeling a whole heck of a lot better. I still get winded going up and down the stairs and feel "something" in my chest, call it a bit of pain. I am also still a bit congested and have a bad cough but, I am slowly getting back to that thing people call routine.

The Princess and Miss Sunshine have really, really, really been trying to help out and not destroy the house. They have both been enjoying cuddling with me for laying in bed during the day for "nap times" so to speak as well (Mom lays down they watch TV or read in bed).

Now I can get back to some knitting, maybe, since I am so behind on my list. Add more babies to the list who will be getting hats instead of sweaters due to lack of time or energy. They will just have to deal and love what they get.

Happy 14th Anniversary to My Brother & His Bride

2008-01-08T14:37:00.000-05:00

And to go with Family Tradition...... (found the picture to go with it)

Happy anniversary, happy anniversary, happy anniversary, HAPPY anniversary! Happy, happy, happy , happy happy anniversary. Happy, happy, happy , happy happy anniversary!

And many more big brother!

Oh and happy birthday to the King. Today is Elvis' birthday as well!

Hot Cocoa Swap Questionnaire

2008-01-07T11:02:00.000-05:00

Cocoa:
1. What is your favorite way to drink cocoa? Prepared with milk? Water? from home made recipe or store bought?, In a tea cup, or big mug? I love homemade recipes but a good rich milk chocolate blend is good also. made with milk in a big mug

2. Marshmallows or whipped cream? Neither. It is very difficult to find kosher marshmallows and I'd prefer not to waste the calories on whipped cream

Yarn/Knitting/Crochet
1. What is your favorite type of yarn? In what colors? Since I am allergic to ALL animal fibers, I love cotton, bamboo, soy, corn and linen

2. Do you knit or crochet (or both)? knit only

3. What are your favorite type of needles, would you like to try something new? I use predominately only bamboo needles but would be willing to try something new

4. Do you have a healthy supply of notions? I can always use more

5. What one thing do you keep thinking you need to buy for your knitting habit (outside of yarn)? Project bags

6. What is your favorite 'quick knit/crochet' pattern (quick gratification) HAt pattern of my own creation

Miscellaneous
1. What is your favorite thing to do in the Winter? Drink Hot chocolate ;-)

2. What is your favorite animal? A tortoise

3. Do you get the 'winter blahs'? Yup, I hate the cold

4. What is your favorite way to beat the blahs? Dream of Florida

5. What is the thing you are most looking forward to this spring? My youngest daughter's birthday

6. What are your favorite treats? chocolate, marzipan, sleep

7. What is your favorite board game? I am a sore loser so I try not to play games

8. Do you have any children (furry or human)? 2 girls and a tortoise

9. Do you have any allergies or special considerations you partner should know about? Animal fiber yarns like wool, mohair, cashmere, etc. I just stay away from all animal yarns including silk. I am also allergic to lanolin and silicone (you’d find them in body products), cats, most dogs, cigarette smoke and fresh cut grass. You asked.

An ER Visit, Road to Recovery and A Winner

2008-01-07T10:48:00.000-05:00

Of course the Pneumonia has to got a lot worse before it gets better so on New Year's Eve I ended up in the Emergency Room for 4 hours. I was afraid I was going to end up in the hospital over night but an EKG, chest x-ray and blood work later the ER Doctor gave me some serious pain medication and more antibiotics and sent me home. Yesterday I took my last one. I still feel run down, cough a TON and have a little bit of pain but not as bad as last week, thankfully.

And now, a drum roll please........

The winner, better late than never...... of my Blogoversary Contest is none other than .......

Michelle of InsanKnitty Congratulations!!!!

I think I still have your address from previous swap so I will mail out your prize this week!

Happy New Year!!

2008-01-01T09:11:00.000-05:00

May 2008 bring you and your families happiness, health, wealth and, of course, more yarn :-)

The sniffles, A cold, The flu no its....

2007-12-29T08:15:00.000-05:00

Just a few short weeks ago I had a cold with a minor fever (101) so I was calling it a mini-flu, well I guess I never really got over it because the mini flu has turned itself into Pneumonia and under threat of hospitalization, I have been bedridden especially since I have never smoked and I am not of a certain age. The doctor wants to keep an eye on me but not too close of an eye say at the hospital. I was okay with that. This is the first opportunity I have had to get on the computer in days and I thought I would make a quick post.

I am not even at home. My Mom picked up my children and me and took us to her house. She said we'd have better care there. She is right of course.

I have never had Pneumonia before. The pain in your chest is incredible! The codeine laced cough syrup does even take the edge off.

The princess is desperate to pick a winner but since we aren't near the prize and didn't think it fair to pick the winner yet. So since Mother Nature has made me delayed if you want to get in your late entries, be my guest.

Happy Holidays!

2007-12-25T10:35:00.000-05:00

Miss Sunshine calls him Pepito and he says, "Merry Christmas, Season Greetings, Happy Hanukkah and Is it snowing yet?" That is all according to Miss Sunshine.

From our family to yours, wishing you a Happy and Healthy Holiday and that your wishes all come true during your holiday season.

Tradition

2007-12-23T15:38:00.000-05:00

As most of you know, we don't celebrate Christmas. What is there for us to do during Christmas you might ask? Eat Chinese food and go to the movies. Sounds very stereotypical but, it is actually comically true. My sister and hubby happen to be in town these past few days and leave tomorrow. They came in town so that my sister could go with Miss Sunshine and me to Miss Sunshine's second opinion doctor appointment. The doctor pretty much said the same exact thing.

Anyway, so tonight, we are doing half the tradition, going out for Chinese food. One of my favorite Chinese restaurants too that we wouldn't get to go to on Christmas Day since they are normally closed Christmas day but, since we are going today, they are open. Being that we live near Philadelphia, we have a Chinatown here. Not as nice or large as NYC but still ours and a touch of China. I have been going to this restaurant since I am able to eat solid foods so you can definitely say it is a favorite.

The Princess is going to and she is very excited. She got all dressed up for the occasion.

She and I will do the other half of the tradition on Christmas Day. Perhaps Enchanted or Golden Compass.

What Happens During Winter Vacation

2007-12-23T10:59:00.000-05:00

When a Princess and Miss Sunshine start their winter vacation what happens to my computer time? It goes down to practically nothing, that is what happens.

Either we are running around like chickens finishing up some last minute Occupational Therapy and doctor appointments or both of them wrestle it out for the computers.

At least we aren't running around for last minute shopping, LOL

If only I was using the time to knit instead. Well, getting kicked off again!!

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-12-19T07:35:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of the week....

Last weeks topic, we wanted to know what is your favorite activity during the "Wintery" months. Please post what would be the perfect vacation during the Winter Season? Would rather you head to the beach, to escape all the cold weather or want to pack your ski's and head to the mountains. You tell us what vacation you prefer during the Winter Season.

Okay, this is an easy one. Since I HATE the cold, can't stand the snow, am attempting to stay away from the wind and as my husband would say throwing away good money by turning the heat way up because I am always freezing, I would have to say some where nice and tropical or at least warmer than here.

I am definitely not a beach person, I don't really like the sand getting every where, therefore, I actually think right now, ideally, I could go for San Diego. The temperature tends to stay during the day a nice 70-ish. There is a lot for the girls to see, the Zoo, Sea World, some friends. It is a nice drive up the coast to Los Angeles if we so choose to see some family and it wouldn't be too hot. Yeah, that does sould like a nice trip.

PS. Click here if you are looking for my Blogoversary Contest

Happy Belated Blogoversary!!

2007-12-18T11:01:00.000-05:00

Wow, I can't believe it has been two years since I began writing this blog. I started back on December 16, 2005 because a soap friend of mine wanted us to write out our bios and it just turned on a new writing flood for me. Okay, I did have some quiet spells there. What can you say when you have two very active little ones running around.

You all have been with me through a lot this past year and I love you all for that. So, of course, I have a Blogoversary present for one of you!!

With a couple of hanks of my favorite yarn to go with it and of course some of my handmade goodies as well.

Since this is a pattern with my favorite yarn, to earn an entry to win it, just leave a comment with your favorite yarn and a pattern for it as well. Get brownie points for each person you point over here or posting about my Blogoversary on your own blog.

You have till British Boxing Day to enter ;-)

One of my Favorite Literary Character's as Yarn

2007-12-13T08:05:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite books to read and one of my favorite made for television mini-series to watch is Pride & Prejudice (not the one with Keira Knightly but the one with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth) by Jane Austen. I like Jane Austen novels, the time period, the romance of it the strong characters and the strong women. I especially love Elizabeth Bennet.

Now I come to find that a company called Yarn Love has dedicated Miss Elizabeth Bennet in Yarn and that The Loopy Ewe has the yarn (click it to go directly to the yarn). Unfortunately for me, of course, although it come in gorgeous colorways, it is made up of 65% Superfine Merino, 20% Bamboo, 15% Silk. Well, 1 out of 3 fibers isn't bad.

Just, please, let me know if any one has a yarn named after Jo March. I think I would be more upset if I couldn't use that yarn. Little Women is STILL my all time favorite book.

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-12-12T11:01:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of the week....

For many people, Winter is a time of cold weather and snow - and many fun outdoor activities that can only be enjoyed during those times! What's YOUR favorite activity in Winter, and is it even outdoors??

Okay, here is a confession for you, I have lived in the mid-Atlantic states my entire life and I HATE THE SNOW!!!! I hate everything about it. It is cold, it is wet, it makes a mess in my house when the kids and hubby drag their boots back in, I don't like to drive on it and it causes havoc on on the entire town.

I'd really prefer to get back under the covers and stay there till spring and warmer weather but of course that is not an option. So perhaps I will just go visit my sister in Florida but, if she calls me one more time and tells me it is over 80 where she lives I might have to hurt her ;-)

Hanukkah - 8th and final night

2007-12-11T12:00:00.000-05:00

Fully lit Hanukkiot or Hanukkah Menorahs will glow brightly tonight. I love the last night of Hanukkah and seeing the entire Menorah lit up. It is so beautiful.

The holiday technically ends tomorrow at sundown since all of our holidays are sundown to sundown, sort of like Christmas which has an "eve" in it but, we don't light candles tomorrow. Tonight is the last time and then we put the menorah, the candles, the dreidels and any decorations away till next year.

We have our huge fun celebration with the kids tonight where I work which should be a ton of fun. My students can't wait.

I hope everyone learned a little something new about Hanukkah this year. Happy holidays. Enjoy your holiday what ever you celebrate and on with the knitting!!!

Hanukkah - 7th Night

2007-12-10T17:19:00.000-05:00

I received TWO wonderful gifts in the mail during the Hanukkah holiday.

The first was from my very good knitting friend Anne

She sent some wonderful goodies including something I had never seen before for Hanukkah and I love the concept and some wonderful Cascade Fixation. Is that a hint to knit some Socks? ;-) Also two bath fizzies that Miss Sunshine is desperate to try in her bath. There is also a lovely skein of Natural cotton in a shade of pink that, of course the Princess wants something made for her immediately if not sooner.

Next, I received an AMAZINGLY AWESOME package of goodies from my swap pal in the Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap who did a fantastic job. Katie definitely had a challenge since I am a non-animal fiber knitter, one of my daughter's is allergic to dairy and I don't celebrate Christmas. She wanted to make sure I got my box during my holiday which ends Wednesday and she lives in Canada. Whew, what a tall order but, she came through with flying colors!!!

Is this not an amazing swap package, or what?!? Coffee, chocolate, Hot chocolate, a mug and yarn, yarn and yarn!!! So soft, so colorful so much variety. Soy, cotton and bamboo yarns, all fibers I love to knit with. Oh so yummy!

Thank you to both Anne and Katie for helping to make my Hanukkah all the more special!!

Hanukkah - The 6th Night

2007-12-10T11:07:00.000-05:00

Sorry, Miss Sunshine took over the computer all day yesterday and I did not get a chance to post so I will be doing more than one post today.

Speaking of Miss Sunshine, she has a "thing" for fire. When she was a lot younger she was burning on one of the pilots on the stove and definitely doesn't like anything hot near that area. She also still thinks that any time a candle is lit, it is for a birthday and needs to be blown out. See our dilemma?

When we go to light our Menorah, unless we have an extra candle for Miss Sunshine to blow out, we find it very difficult to sing the blessings or light the candles. So, we make sure we have some extra candles around to she can blow them out. She will even say the blessings along with the Princess (or at least pretend to say them) if she knows she can blow a candle out at the end. The Princess likes to hold the candle for her and Miss Sunshine says "amen" and blows it out. I guess a new family tradition is born.

Hanukkah - The 5Th Night

2007-12-08T21:43:00.000-05:00

I saw these advertisements recently for my private elementary school. You see, I grew up in West Philadelphia and if you had a choice you absolutely did not go to public school, you went to any kind of private school you could find. We, obviously, are not Catholic, so we went to a Jewish prep school (we actually could have gone Quaker but that thought didn't cross my parents' minds till my sister was ready for school so, she went to a Quaker elementary school instead)

Anyway, back to these advertisements. They make mention how students who go to their schools have better morals and values because of what they are taught there and the last one had this girl with short hair and how she recently donated her hair to a girl who had lost her hair to cancer. It is to get you to think how wonderful of her. I want my children to have the same type of values as this little girl; I want to send my children to the same school.

If I could actually afford it, would I want to send my daughters to this school? Well, yes because it is a Jewish Day school and my Alma Mater but not necessarily because of the values it teaches. Did I not get those from my parents?

It did get me thinking of the Princess' values and all the types of things the Princess has done to give back to the community at her ripe old age of 7, though.

She has donated her hair to Locks of Love, twice and at this moment is growing it out to do it a third time
She has donated her piggy bank money to MANNA, an organization that provides meals and other specialized services to men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-threatening illness, every year since she is 4
Last year on days that she had vacation but her sister did not she offered to go in and read books to her sister's preschool and wants to do it again this year
Every year on her birthday and on Hanukkah she selects one of her new toys and donates it to the Marines Toy Drive
Ever since her sister was diagnosed with a mild form of Autism, she has been an immense help to me and help to her sister giving up her own free time most of the time to do it

Did I mention she is only 7?

With all that is going on with Miss Sunshine, I want to take out some time for the Princess and say just how proud I really am of her. I highly doubt it is the values I learned from that school but definitely those I learned from my parents. I am glad to see that it is being passed down to the Princess. She does still fight me, throw her hissy fits and tantrums but, there are still good values and a very good 'Neshuma' soul sprouting and growing inside of her. She truly is becoming a wonderful young lady.

A New Swap, How Can I Resist?

2007-12-07T14:01:00.000-05:00

A yummy Hot Cocoa Swap is on its way! Hosted by the ever warm Michelle and Lesley. Sign ups begin on December 16Th!! The swap runs from January 1st (who can think about January?!?!?!) till February 28Th (do they know that 2008 is a leap year and therefore February actually has 29 days?!)

As I type this, watching it snow flurry outside and drink some Hershey's white chocolate hot cocoa... I can't wait!!

Hanukkah - The 4th Night

2007-12-07T07:50:00.000-05:00

Miss Sunshine got her medical assistance card for Hanukkah yesterday!!! It was a HUGE sigh of relief around here!! We can now, hopefully really get the ball rolling on some of her treatment and get some of these medical bills paid. Don't get me wrong, our regular insurance is good but, with a co-payment 3-4 times a week it does add up.

Today we are going to get Miss Sunshine's speech and language evaluation done. I am very happy we finally have an actually date for the the thing because the center keep on calling back and changing it. I actually began to feel bad for the coordinator because it wasn't her fault. At least she got us an appointment closer to our home instead of one where we'd have to drive close to an hour away like our original appointment.

So something light and fun for Hanukkah today. The original Adam Sandler Hanukkah Song.

Hanukkah 3rd Night

2007-12-06T09:30:00.000-05:00

We got a dusting of snow with our second night of Hanukkah. Both girls were very excited for that. Mom, not so excited. This morning of course it is a sheet of ice out there and both Mom and Miss Sunshine are buckets of snot - sorry to be gross.

Today might be a Hot chocolate, curl up in bed, knit and watch movies kind of day for the two of us.

How to Light A Menorah (The Hanukkah Candelabra)

Things You'll Need
Candles
Menorahs (Has 9 places for candles)
Matches

Step One
Place the menorah in a central spot in your home where all who pass can see its glow.

Step Two
Recite the following blessing at nightfall on the first day of Hanukkah before you light the candle on the far right: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with his commandments and commanded us to kindle the lights of Hanukkah."

Step Three
Light the shamash, or service candle, and then use it to light the candle, or oil wick, on the far right of the menorah. As you do so, say the following: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who performed miracles for our ancestors, at this season, in days past." Replace the shamash in its holder and let both candles glow until they burn themselves out.

Step Four
Add the following shehechiyanu blessing only on the first night of Hanukkah: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who gave us life and kept us and delivered us to this time." (You can say this blessing at anything actually during the first of many events. When you give birth, child first walks, made it through a tough time, etc.)

Step Five
Light two candles on the second night, keeping in mind that you always light from left to right using the shamash.

Step Six
Continue with three candles on the third night in the same manner, and continue doing this each night until, on the eighth night, all eight candles are burning brightly (nine, including the shamash). On each night, repeat the first two blessings quoted above.

The menorah should be filled from right to left, but the candles lighted from left to right.

The placement of the shamash can vary with different menorahs, but it will be set apart in some way. It may be in the center of the menorah, or it may be raised above the others.

On Friday, light the candles before sunset to avoid lighting on the Sabbath.

As you do with all lighted candles, keep these ones away from highly flammable objects and well beyond the reach of small children.

2nd Night of Hanukkah

2007-12-05T10:58:00.001-05:00

Were you wondering what the girls received last night? ;-) They received their gifts from their paternal grandmother and paternal great Aunt. They got some Magical School Bus books and movies, Shrek 3 and a few other videos. We did light candles and Miss Sunshine thought it was a birthday party and attempted to blow them out.

What did I get you ask? A nasty cold!! I am so congested it isn't even funny. Plus the chills and the chance of snow tonight does not warm the spirit. YUCK!

Perhaps I will make Latkes (Potato pancakes) tonight

2 cups peeled and shredded potatoes
1 tablespoon grated onion
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour or matzah meal
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup peanut oil

Wring out all the excess water and starch from the potatoes

In a medium bowl stir the potatoes, onion, eggs, flour and salt together.

In a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Place large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the hot oil, pressing down on them to form 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick patties. Brown on one side, turn and brown on the other. Let drain on paper towels. Serve hot!

Easy enough and you can enjoy with sour cream or apple sauce

Happy Hanukkah - 1st Night

2007-12-04T11:19:00.000-05:00

First Night of Hanukkah is tonight and the girls are soo excited!! Here is a little something for you, since I get asked this all the time.

HOW TO PLAY DREIDEL

There is a long tradition of playing games of chance during the evenings of the holiday.

The Dreidel is a four sided top printed with the Hebrew letters:

These letters represent the words "nes godal hayah sham" and translate into
A Great Miracle Happened There.

Also the numbers in add up to

Nun = 50, Gimmel = 3, Hey = 5, Shin = 300 which equals 358.

Remarkably, this is equivalent to the exact numerical value for the word
"Moshiach" (Messiah).

Mem = 40, Shin = 300, Yud = 10, Chet = 8 which equals
358.

The Rules of the Game:

Everyone in the game starts with 10-15 tokens (gold foil chocolate coins,
nuts, raisins, pennies). Each player puts one of these into the middle (called
the pot). The dreidel is spun by one player at a time. Whether he wins or
loses depends on which face of the dreidel is up when it falls.

Nun
means nisht or "nothing." Player does nothing.

Gimmel
means gantz or "all." Player takes everything in the pot.

Hey
means halb or "half." Player takes half of what is in the pot.

Shin
means shtel or "put in." Player adds two objects to the pot.

When only one object or none is left in the pot, every player adds one. When
an odd number of objects are in the pot, the player rolling heh, "half" takes
half the total plus one. When one person has won everything the game is over.

Have Fun!!

A Hat Fit For A Princess

2007-12-02T20:37:00.000-05:00

Begun and finished during my two day craft show. Am I a fast knitter or was it a very slow craft show? Hmmm..... (not the best picture but if not now, I will forget)

Of course the Princess LOVES the hat and since she went with me today, as soon as I finished it and the place we were was VERY cold, she put it on ASAP and was sporting it. A few ladies that had spaces there around me were telling me that for next year I should sell some hats and matching scarves or mittens too. Food for thought but not so sure. I did sell a few soap bags and wash clothes though :-D

Well, back to the Sigma and baby knitting.....

Cotton Ease and a Hat

2007-11-30T21:21:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow and Sunday, believe it or not, I am not running to OT or other appointments I am actually working a two day craft fair which means I can also take a some what simple knitting project with me. I usually take a wash cloth or a soap bag with me because when I am finished, I can place it on my sale table. However, the Princess is in need of a new hat. Imagine that ;-) She did appropriate my hat but it is not pink so she really would like her own in pink of course.

I showed her a skein of burgundy with no band (not sure what it is), a skein of natural pink from Lion Brand, a bag of various pinks and purples from Sugar N Cream and a skein of Berry Cotton Ease. She chose the Cotton Ease. To be honest, this will be my first time using Cotton Ease. I know some of you rave about it so I can't wait to try it. I have a pattern in mind. Not 100% on the number of stitch to cast on but, I will do some quick math (yuck!) and figure it out before cast on.

Miss Sunshine already dug up her hat from last year and is wearing it proudly. She loves that green and pink thing. Not sure if I ever posted a picture of it.

It is cute.

So tomorrow I hopefully will sell out of goodies AND get some time to knit a hat for the princess. Now that would be an ideal day.

SP 11 Pal Goodies Arrival and I know Who my Angel is!!

2007-11-30T19:06:00.000-05:00

I FINALLY know who my SP 11 Pal is and she is an angel!! Julianne really out did herself with the final package!!!

A lovely holiday issue of "Knit Simple", yummy, delicious chocolates that Miss Sunshine and I have already sampled, Princess-y items for Miss Sunshine and The Princess, Simply GORGEOUS hand knit socks done in Maizy which will go into my "special day" rotation (I thank you so much for these!!!) and TWO skeins of these amazingly soft Purple and Orange Elsebeth Lavold Cotton Frappe.

Here is a close up of the Purple and Orange Elsebeth Lavold Cotton Frappe. What a terrific color combination.

Julianne Thank You so VERY much for absolutely EVERYTHING you have sent me from the messages, the posts and the packages over the past few months!! You have truly been a great new friend over my tough times.

Sending you many cyber (((HUGS))) across the Internet!!

Knitted Socks

2007-11-28T07:44:00.000-05:00

No, I haven't taken up knitting traditional knitted socks. I have just realized something this morning about knitted socks.

I have two pairs of wonderful knitted socks from two AMAZING friends. One in North Country Cotton from my friend Robin (blog-less) and one pair in Bamboozle from the ever so fabulous Jessi.

Ever time Miss Sunshine has a critical appointment with one of her doctors, ever time she has a crucial test being done, like today, I grab a pair of my knitted socks and put them on. As you can guess, they get washed quite frequently and are lasting very well. I guess I am subconsciously taking all of you with me to my appointments with Miss Sunshine. Of course I am also taking some knitting with me. Wouldn't be an appointment without some knitting in my bag.

So, today and tomorrow, you will all be with us. We have two very important appointments and hopefully get the ball rolling on some services so to speak.

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-11-24T08:48:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of the week.... you know you were waiting for this, weren't you? (I hope my pal actually reads these with a cup of coffee so I don't bore her to sleep, LOL)

What is the ideal setting for enjoying the perfect cup of coffee? Who would be there - or would you be alone? Inside or out? Morning or night? With food or just the steaming cup of Joe?

My house is always so LOUD. A lot of noise all day long. The kids, the husband, the TV, the music, the video games, the rustling of papers, it is just so LOUD. Even when they sleep, they all sleep so LOUDLY.

I get up before everyone else does and if I remember and if I have enough time, I make myself a nice cup of coffee and sit there in the stillness of the house before everything begins to move and shake and wake up. I sit still and quite, enjoy the peace without a care in the world, clear my head without a thought except the scent of the coffee and the stillness of the house before the day begins.

Then in a few moments it can get LOUD all over again.

Although today, I enjoyed a nice slice of homemade pumpkin pie with my coffee too

Black Friday

2007-11-23T09:09:00.000-05:00

Okay, so why is it that they call it Black Friday anyway?

With the not sleeping at the getting up at the crack of dawn repeatedly, this morning actually gave me something to do. I got up, got dressed in the dark before the sun rose, and went people watching at the big stores like Best Buy, Target and Walmart which are all near where I live. It was all rather fascinating. We have already completed all of our shopping so I really don't have anything to buy for the holidays. I had no cart and walked around the stores. People looking at me oddly since I wasn't buying anything.

People had their carts filled with who knows what, lists in hand with items they needed to buy. Some looking frantic because they couldn't find what they needed and some on their cells asking the person on the other end millions of questions. It was all of so surreal. The sales people looked tired and worn out already. One told me he had been there since 3 AM working and customers were so rude and greedy. I truly felt for him. I was always taught you always get more flies with honey ;-)

I am going out again later with my sister. It is a tradition with us. Last near we even went to Toys R Us. I know we are a bit nuts ;-)

Doing a Mitzvah, A Good Deed

2007-11-22T11:15:00.000-05:00

My good friend Chan is running a wonderful contest on her blog. I tought I would reiterate my response here as well.

Being that Miss Sunshine was just diagnosed with PDD-NOS, we are selecting a new charity. I am thinking Autism Speaks http://www.autismspeaks.org/ but perhaps more local, Autism Society of American, Philadelphia Chapter http://www.asaphilly.org/

Oh and to answer in your debate Chan, the is a difference in my mind between a charity and a non-profit as well. A youth group, a church, a school could all be non-profits. That doesn't mean they are charities trying to raise money for a cause.

Oh and chan also had this blog thing on her blog as well. Perfect for Thanksgiving :-)

You Are Apple Pie

You're the perfect combo of comforting and traditional.
You prefer things the way you've always known them.
You'll admit that you're old fashioned, and you don't see anything wrong with that.
Your tastes and preferences are classic. And classic never goes out of style.

Those who like you crave security.
People can rely on you to be true to yourself - and true to them.
You're loyal, trustworthy, and comfortable in your own skin.
And because of these qualities, you've definitely earned a lot of respect.

What Kind of Pie Are You?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2007-11-22T10:40:00.001-05:00

The Princess and I have already made two non-dairy pumpkin pies - YUM!!!

And the Princess and her Ita (Maternal grandmother) have made a delicious non-dairy apple pie (double yum!!)
(sorry, stock photos)

Still to make the veggies, salad and potatoes....

The girls and I got to see my sister last night. We were SO EXCITED!!!! She just got in from Florida and we hadn't seen her in a while. It is going to be a great holiday weekend.

Teach Your Children Well

2007-11-20T15:00:00.000-05:00

It is finally time to teach the Princess to knit. I told her she needed to learn how to tie a knot and a bow, the good 'ole rabbit ears, and by golly she did it. We had our first quick lesson on Sunday night.

She picked a set of pink plastic needles that I had in my collection and some pink yarn, of course. I casted on for her to make it easier for her. She put her hands on mine and off we went. We did two rows this way and then she did a row herself, sort of. She didn't get too frustrated and I was really proud of her. I know it is going to take her a while to get it on her own but she really has the drive to learn and she really wants something that she and I can be passionate about together.

I spend a lot of time with Miss Sunshine either taking her to appointments or doing therapy at home, I want something the Princess and I can have for the two of us that we can do where ever. The Princess decided it should be knitting and I completely agree with her. You should just see the excitement in her face and twinkle in her eyes.

Seminar Knitting

2007-11-18T20:13:00.000-05:00

I currently teaching at an accredited after school and even though it is only a few hours a week, it is still accredited and therefore he teachers still need to have so many hours a year of in service. Today was one of those such days.

The seminar was interesting in itself and I won't bore you with the details but the brought in a very dynamic speaker and Author from Boston to speak to a few after school programs. During the morning session, I paid very close attention to him but noticed a few other teachers knitting so of course I took out the knitting too. I spent the rest of the day listening and knitting. Not a bad way to make money ;-)

38 Things - What the Heck

2007-11-16T22:10:00.000-05:00

Even though I shouldn't be talking to Jessi, the trader that she is, I figure what the heck, I will answer these stupid questions. I haven't been blogging in a while anyway. I also haven't been sleeping.

38 things about me that you may or may not want to know.

1. Name one person who made you laugh last night? Tim Gunn, I was watching a repeat of Project Runway. I love that show

2. What were you doing at 0800? Watching America's Next Top Model (Okay i like that crap TV, sue me)

3. What were you doing 30 minutes ago? Reading the news on CNN.com

4. What happened to you in 2006? Do I remember 2006? Oh Yeah, Activities for the kids mostly

5. What was the last thing you said out loud? No, You cannot blow bubbles onto your sister's bed

6. How many beverages did you have today? 2 cups of coffee, 8 cups of water, 1 cup of tea

7. What color is your hairbrush? Purple

8. What was the last thing you paid for? OT for my daughter

9. Where were you last night? Home, watching reruns

10. What color is your front door? Brick Red

11. Where do you keep your change? Lots and lots of Piggy Banks

12. What’s the weather like today? It TOO DAMN COLD

13. What’s the best ice-cream flavor? Not a huge ice cream eater right now

14. What excites you? If someone were to tell me Miss Sunshine was going to be just fine

15. Do you want to cut your hair? I need a cut and color

16. Are you over the age of 25? Didn't your Mama teach you never to ask a woman her age?

17. Do you talk a lot? What's a lot?

18. Do you watch the O.C.? Got bored after the first season

19. Do you know anyone named Steven? Yes I do

20. Do you make up your own words? I have two kids. what do you think?

21. Are you a jealous person? On Occasion

22. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter “A”. Aileen

23. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter ‘S’. Sonya

24. Who’s the first person on your received call list? Aileen

25. What does the last text message you received say? "British Actress Emily Blunt has vowed to remain in her native England because she hates Hollywood (WENN)"

26. Do you chew on your straw? No.

27. Do you have curly hair? Well, sort of. It is a wavy curly

28. Where’s the next place you’re going to? Sleep

29. Who’s the rudest person in your life? Difficult to say

30. What was the last thing you ate? PB&J

31. Will you get married in the future? I think this is it

32. What’s the best movie you’ve seen in the past 2 weeks? Have I seen a movie in the past two weeks?

33. Is there anyone you like right now? I am supposed to like people? j/k I have made a lot of new friends through knitting and blogging.

34. When was the last time you did the dishes? You are supposed to do the dishes?

35. Are you currently depressed? Being that my youngest daughter was just diagnosed with something that shocked me, I think I am a little bit

36. Did you cry today? yes

37. Why did you answer and post this? Because my good friend Jessi made me, er I mean asked me to do it.

38. Tag 5 people who would do this survey: Hmm, I think we are all memed out :-) Anyone want to give it a go?

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-11-16T21:32:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of the week!! Still struggling with blog posts so these are definitely a great idea

The Thursday upcoming is Thanksgiving in the U.S., so let's all - American and not alike! - just share a post with what it is we're thankful for. A wonderful thing to do any time of year, I thought it'd be a nice thing to share for this week with the group!

Miss Sunshine and I have been through the ringer this year. Whether you read my blog or not, we have been going through all kinds of testing to see what is going on with her and finally this past Tuesday her official diagnosis came through.

My Mom and I call it alphabet soup because everything has an acronym with letters. Officially she has PDD-NOS, ADHD and fine motor skill delay. To learn about PDD-NOS, just click on the ribbon on the side bar. I am in a bit of a shock needless to say.

I am very thankful to have such a wonderful Mom to hold my hand and to offer support through this all. I am also very thankfully to have such a wonderful sister who is actually an expert in this field and although she lives in Florida, she is flying home next week to spend some time with me and then flying in again for Miss Sunshine's next critical appointment in December. My sister has already gotten me in touch with some fabulous resources here where I live that I don't think I would have found on my own. I don't know what I would do without the two of them.

I am also thankful for the Princess. She has really been amazing through all of this and she know it is still going to be a struggle. I try to make sure she gets to be 7 but she helps me out so much. I am so thankful to have such an amazing daughter.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

Stranded

2007-11-16T21:23:00.001-05:00

It seems as if my closest knitting blog buddies (AND YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!!) Have up and left blogger for some other blog type formatting which shall remain nameless. They SEEM to have up and done this during my week of shock, pain and panic (hence the lack of blogging) and never even bothered to tell me they were moving. Some friends they turned out to be ;-)

At the moment too much change is not a very good thing to my system and I was never one who was any good at playing follow the leader or good under peer pressure. Actually if my peers were doing it I usually did the opposite, LOL.

Therefore, even though I feel as though my buds stranded me here on blogger, I am staying put. At least for the time being. Blogger has been good to me and I need all the good I can get.
(see my answer to Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap topic of the week for further details....)

Happy Belated Birthday to My Big Brother!!

2007-11-12T09:35:00.000-05:00

My BIG Brother turned the B-I-G F-O-U-R-T-Y this past Saturday the old man and I am so THANKFUL I got to see him make it to his birthday. He has definitely give us a great deal of scares through his life with having both severe asthma and allergies as a child (it was easier to say what he could eat than what he could not) and all his hospital trips to his dare devil phase which I do not blame to his most recent scare, his bout with cancer, twice.

So here is to you big brother, we might not be as close as we used to be but, I sure hope to spend another 40 years with you. Even more....

Look What I Got!!

2007-11-12T07:39:00.000-05:00

I ordered the beta t-shirt from Ravelry and it arrived this week!! I am so excited! A lot of people already got theirs because they went to Rhinebeck, which of course, I did not go to. Without firth ado, the shirt and the buttons I ordered.

A close-up of what it says. They also sent to me a Name badge from Rhinebeck. Isn't that sweet?

Here is a better close-up of the buttons. The "daily dose of fiber" has two meanings for me. Not only for the knitting but because of my lovely colon issues I literally have to take a daily does of fiber, LOL. So appropriate.

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-11-10T09:35:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of the week!! Love these since I currently have a little bit of writers block

As the cold of winter approaches, do you change the projects you work on? Not really. I still have a gazillion babies to knit for, I still don't like long, intricate projects that take a long time to knit and I still can't knit with animal fibers so there isn't much to change ;-). I might make The Princess or Miss Sunshine a new winter hat if we can't find their old ones or they need a new one or if one of their friends request one but that is about it

Do you work on gifts for others or do you continue working on projects for yourself? I RARELY ever knit something for myself. I should do that one day, I really should. So the answer is, I knit 99.9% for others.

KI Jewish Deli

2007-11-07T10:41:00.000-05:00

With all the goings on around here, I never posted the picture I took with my camera phone (so excuse the fuzziness) while waiting for a table at one of the better known Jewish Delis around my parts with the Princess

The Princess is holding my knitting. You can end up waiting a while so what better to do than knit? I do get stares of course but, the princess and I give them the mind your own business stares right back.

Actually, the father and grandfather of one of my students from last year own the place but, I actually never have run into her there. I guess she gets sick of the food, LOL

Have no clue what it is going to end up being. I am just playing around with some left over cotton I had in my bag. I didn't feel like pulling out Sigma in a crowded waiting area.

101? 102? 103?

2007-11-07T07:33:00.000-05:00

Guess the temperature of my children. Yes that is correct the are running fevers!! Both off and on for the past three days. LUCKY ME!!! However they seem to have no other symptoms so I am guessing it is just one of those passing viruses. Once they take their hourly dose of Tylenol they are just fine and dandy and of course Miss Sunshine is back to running around like a chicken. In fact she has taken to laying down and watching her evening movie with our stuffed animal chicken (how ironic is that?, LOL) I sometimes call her Monkey or chicken and she has one of each and I guess she knows that they are meant as her "nicknames"

The Princess, on the other hand, either lays in bed in a fever induced slumber (she is the one who has spiked to 103) or is plowing through books like no tomorrow. Her father finally handed her the entire collection of Narnia books and said here read this. It is an all in one so it is a tad heavy for her but, I think she was actually thinking about it.

While they lay in bed I am going to try to knit but it can be difficult when all I hear is " Mama, can you get me more milk, pleaseeeeee?" (Miss Sunshine) " Mom, Do I really need to stay in bed?" (The Princess) All Day Long

Too Much Delay of Gratification AKA The Sigma Tank

2007-11-06T21:09:00.001-05:00

I am not one for long drawn out projects but, I have been promising my sister a sweater type something or other for quite sometime now (say over a year) so it was about time to buckle down and knit the woman something. I mean she is my daughter's mentor and well, she is my best bud. It is the least I could do for her even though she did up and move to Florida.

As some of you know, I did select something I liked, The Sigma Tank because I can play with it and plug and play numbers of my own and play with the design. I am going to do some "fixing" at the top of it. If I ever get there. Here is where it is so far:

It is being knit in Dark Green Pakucho Organic Cotton using size 8US circular needles. Thankfully my sister is a teeny tiny thang and I am making the extra-small size. Think I can be finished by Thanksgiving? Well perhaps Hanukkah? If not my sister's birthday is in May LOL

An FO, No Really

2007-11-05T12:46:00.001-05:00

Take Lion Brand's Nature's Choice Organic Cotton Yarn

And some double pointed needles. A lot of time in waiting rooms, a creative mind, some patience and a knitting friend sitting next to you at a shopping event where you are selling your soaps and you get this:

A very cute, natural, neutral, organic cotton baby hat for a Mom who doesn't know the gender of her baby yet like my cousin who is due in February.

US 9 double pointed needles

Cast on 54 stitches evenly on 3 needles (18 on each needle). Join being careful not to twist.

k3p3 for 1 inch. stockinette till hat is long enough for you (I did 5 inches) Begin decrease.

k4, ssk around. knit 1 round.

k3 ssk around, knit 1 round.

k2 ssk around, knit 1 round

ssk around till you have 3 stitches left.

I-cord till the cord is a length you like. Bind off.

You can increase/decrease cast on as long as you can do a k3p3 rib.

Can you tell I designed this to practice my slip, slip, knits? ;-)

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap Topic of The Week

2007-11-05T07:29:00.000-05:00

The Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap is also going to do a topic of the week (Hmm, wonder where they got that idea from?) and here is is:

When did you first start drinking coffee? What age were you? Was it about the caffeine, or do you love the taste and smell? Tell us how your passion began!

Don't criticize but, I started drinking coffee at a VERY young age. I spend about 3 months of every year from birth in Cali, Colombia South America where it is second to Mother's Milk down there being that coffee is their largest legal crop and major export. I probably started having Cafe con leche (coffee made with milk, not water) at 5 or 6 with my breakfast. The caffeine really does not effect you at all since it is in your blood. Coffee is served with every meal when I am with my Colombian side of my family. From breakfast through late night before bed, a cafe con leche to a drink similar to the Italian expresso called Tinto served in small cups.

I am considered a "cheater" to my Colombian side, though, since I don't drink it black. I need my sweeter whether it be the yellow packets or raw sugar and milk.

I Received my Fall into Autumn Swap Package!!

2007-11-04T20:41:00.000-05:00

Okay so I did receive it a few days ago, my Fall into Autumn Swap package by the ever so kind and patient Katie. So now I am going to do my package and the WONDERFUL Katie some Justice and show lots and lots of pictures of my box because she had to wait soooooo long for me to talk about it.

Here is the box when I first opened it. Everything is wrapped in lovely lavender tissue paper and beautiful purple ribbons. The green tags mark things specific for Miss Sunshine and The Princess. Wasn't that nice of Katie to send things for the little ones too?

Here is everything laid out on my foyer floor. Now that is A LOT of goodies!!! I had to sneak off there to ensure I would be able to open everything without any prying or grabbing hands.

Everything unwrapped!! Exactly (I think) in the same space as above. Look at all that wonderful goodness!! That is a sheep tape measure to add to my collection of tape measures of course.

The GORGEOUS washcloth deserves a photo all on its own, of course. In a luscious shade of purple. Is there any other color?

Last, but of course no least, Manos Cotton Stria is an absolutely awesome shade of kettle dyed lavender. These are my first hanks of Manos Cotton Stria believe it or not. I love, love, love it!!!

Katie, you done good and were patient for the posting to boot so I thank you for that too!!

Bit off More than I can Chew

2007-11-02T07:11:00.000-04:00

I am usually not one to complain often or vent but, I really did it to myself this time.

Around this time every year, Miss Sunshine's pre-school puts on a wonderful shopper's event that is a terrific fundraiser for her school. She goes to a terrific little school just outside of Philadelphia that does wonders for her, doesn't cost over the top and is non-denominational. Perfect for us.

Last year, the organizer, a Friend of mine, asked since her son was "graduating" if I would take over. I said sure since I was a craft show do-er and nothing was going on in my life really and truly. Why not?

Then the you know what hit the fan with Miss Sunshine this past summer and we have been bounce little a rubber ball from doctor to doctor from appointment to appointment here there and every where but, I made a commitment and I keep those. Plus all my other commitments like my part-time job, my soaps, my knitting, swaps, etc.

Well, folks, this month, I need to apologize to all of you because I finally realized what I did. I finally realized that I have over extended myself this passed October. I have not been ignoring you. I have not been forgetting you. I think of all of you quite often and how you are doing. Unfortunately, I don't own an i-Phone or Blackberry to blog and email in the waiting room or in traffic (I didn't say that) So I just have to think it and hope you can forgive me.

My Shopper's Event is tonight and tomorrow and then I drop my wares at yet another show so I hope things will settle again on Monday. Please wish me lots of sales

Oh and to my Fall into Autumn Pal: I did get my box!!! I haven't even had a moment to open it yet but, I wanted you to know I got it!!! So thank you!!!! It will be modeling on Monday

Vegan Pal Swap Box Arrived!!

2007-10-31T08:27:00.000-04:00

I am SO SORRY to my Vegan Pal 2 Swap pal, Michelle. My box arrived this passed weekend and I am JUST getting to post today. I am SO VERY SORRY about that. I am usually oh so much better than this

She sent to me such amazing goodies!! The Princess who cannot have milk LOVED the cookies. Please note that one is missing ;-) AND she is eying up the chocolate bar since we have them when we can find them around here. I will give it to her of course since I am that kind of Mom, LOL. The yarn is wonderful cotton and one of my favorites is a deep purple!

Thank you so much!! I just LOVED this swap!

Sign Ups and Buttons

2007-10-26T22:29:00.000-04:00

Don't forget to sign up for the Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap. Sign ups began already this week! Don't miss out on the fun.

I keep forgetting to add my SNOL button to my side bar but, I will add here in the mean time, LOL

Oh and if anyone is in the market for some lower end yarn or some notions, go check out your local JoAnn's. They are having a sale right now and I think it ends tomorrow. You can sometimes get some bargain basement treasures.

The Only Place I Knit... Lately

2007-10-25T16:50:00.000-04:00

Ah the waiting room. Nothing better to do then to wait, read a magazine or to knit. It seems to be the only place I get to knit lately. I haven't been to my knitting group in a while because it is extremely difficult to go with Miss Sunshine. She tends to be very disruptive to the other patrons of the restaurant where the meeting is held and also apparently to the other members of the knitting group. So I can't go unless I can get a babysitter for the kids, which I have not been able to do lately.

Therefore, I knit when and where I can which is in a waiting room which I tend to be in one on average three times a week. It can be some quality knitting time. I go to different appointments for different things for both of my daughters and so I take my knitting every where with me.

I am still knitting the same top for my sister that I am still hoping to get done by the time she comes to visit for Thanksgiving. It could happen. I do have a lot of waiting room visits from now until then. There is also this hat I started with a different type of organic cotton. I try to knit a bit of each project every time. Maybe that will help get them done quicker.

I do have a few work meetings coming up. Hmm, I wonder if my boss would mind if I took my knitting with me? They are night meetings ;-)

Smack My Forehead, I Can't Believe I Forgot to tell You

2007-10-23T14:26:00.000-04:00

Smack the forehead hard!! With all the running around we do, Miss Sunshine, the Princess and I, I can't believe I forgot to tell you we got a new pet this past Saturday. Yes, Miss Tina Turner Tortoise has a companion. No, not another Tortoise nor a cat nor a dog (my allergies could not take it). Not even a gerbil or a mouse although both Miss Sunshine and the Princess begged and pleaded.

The Princess picked out a very lovely blue Japanese Fighter Fish AKA a Betta fish that she let Miss Sunshine name. She aptly named the fish Miss Sparkles. We have already tried to feed the fish all the fish food at once, poor fish. We now know you cannot do that. The fish resides in a very lovely new tank and if it lasts as long as our old Betta, 3 years, it will be so lucky. Perhaps we will pick up some faux plants this weekend for it.

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

2007-10-23T12:09:00.000-04:00

As many of you know, my birthday was a few weeks back. From my family, I have asked for gift certificates to the lovely yarn shops in the past or knitting books or yarn and they look at me like I am strange but this year, this year was different.

My brother and SIL live about 45 minutes from me and I decided to look and see if there was a yarn shop in their neck of the woods. To me they live in the boonies, btw, having grown up in or very close to a major city. Lo and behold there is!! A Garden of Yarn is practically in their back yard and they carry a variety of yarns that I really like so I thought I'd half heartedly ask them to get me a gift from there. I didn't think they actually would. My SIL went there one morning after dropping her kids off at school. She told me that if she actually knitted, she would shop there she liked it so much. AMAZING!! They got me a very nice gift certificate from there so I guess I will be making the drive out there one weekend.

How much fun will that be?

Busy, Busy....Again

2007-10-20T09:56:00.000-04:00

Fall, a time for hay rides, apple picking, pumpkin carving and the oh so wonderful craft show. My busy season has begun! This year I am trying different things in my product line, doing some of my same shows and one or two new ones.

Getting everything thing made and ready is both fun and a ton of work. Deciding scent color shape, packaging... all the things I love. Now that everyting is in my "warehouse" I have space to really spreadout and have energy to work.

The princess has really taken an interest in the family business this year and has come up with two products of her own this season that will also go on display. I am so excited!!! One is named for our new fish, Sparkles, and is a heart shaped glycerin soap with fish embeds. The other, which she did a lot more "research" into is named for my nephews' dog and is an all natural dog Shampoo with tea tree, peppermint and lavender essential oils called Daisy's Doggie Shampoo (all of our products are named for females). Her grandmother's dog tried it and is already a fan!!

The Princess also helped me with several new soaps like Pumpkin Creme Brulee, Spearmint Eucalyptus, and Oatmeal Milk and Honey (I think half of this batch is spoken for, right Anne?). Also made some Shea butter lotion and tried my new fragrance Blue Musk that is little and fresh and I just LOVE it!!.

I have a few more weeks till my first show and a bit more work to do but, I think it is going to be an exciting fall season.

Topic of the Week for Fall into Autumn Swap

2007-10-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

I can't believe I didn't answer my own topic of the week. Sheesh, what kind of hostess doesn't that make me. No one answer that :-P

Now that it is getting cooler here, it makes me think of apple picking and hay rides. Are you the type that likes to go to participate in all the fall festivities like apple picking, pumpkins, decorating for the fall, hay rides, baking fall goodies, etc. or do you just sit and count the days till Thanksgiving/Christmas/Hanukkah?

I can't exactly do the hay ride thing unless I take some allergy meds before I go therefore I tend to avoid them but, I do love going to the Orchards and going apple picking. We have a few really good ones near us too. Nothing beats a homemade apple pie or crisp made with apples you picked yourself, YUM! I actually just made one and ate it with some yummy tea from Mary. I also love pumpkin pie, which I make as well just not with fresh pumpkin. I keep telling myself one of these days but haven't yet.

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah are two of my favorite holidays but the "before we get there" part are pretty stressful. So, I don't exactly count the days. Yes, we are already in the who brings what and were is it going to be "discussion". Oh what fun.

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap

2007-10-16T11:57:00.000-04:00

The questionnaire is up for the Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap being hosted by Anne and Holly. I am very much looking forward to this swap. Okay, when am I not looking forward to a swap? (shut up Jessi)

It is a nice long questionnaire and I am going to answers as best I can in hopes that my pal really pays attention because besides my allergies, I celebrate a different holiday during the season.

Coffee

What are your favorite kinds of coffee? (Brands, Roasts, anything at all you'd like to share!) I am half Colombian so I really prefer Colombian coffee

Do you prefer whole bean or ground coffee? I did have a grind and brew coffee maker but, I gave it to my Mom so I no longer have a grinder :-(

This time of year, there are often Holiday Blends available, and many flavored coffees - do you drink flavored coffee? I am not into mint coffee but I do like a pumpkin latte every so often. I like Mocha, hazelnut and vanilla on occasion as well.

Do you enjoy special blends? As long as it is Colombian ;-)

How do you take your coffee? Cream and Sugar? Straight up? My Colombia relatives call me a traitor but, I like splenda and milk in my coffee

Decaf? NEVER

Do you prefer drinking from a nice thick mug, or a matched cup and saucer? Unless I am drinking real espresso from an espresso cup, then a coffee mug

Winter and Holidays - PLEASE be descriptive! Your pal will need this information to be sure to put together a package you will enjoy!

What is your favorite part of Winter? That it is only three months long ;-) Winter break? I can go visit my sister in Florida? Hot chocolate

Do you celebrate a holiday in December, and if so, which holiday? I celebrate Hanukkah, Wahoo it is 8 days long!!

If you celebrate Christmas, do you put up a tree? No Christmas, no tree, no Hanukkah bush, no lights, no decorating, no angels, no Santas, no Reindeer, no snowmen (I am hoping you get the idea)

Would you enjoy items related to the holiday, or would you prefer a Winter themed package? If you can manage Hanukkah themed items that would be wonderful but, I know how difficult that is so winter or even a hot chocolate themed package works

Do you collect anything? Besides yarn? Disney type items like Goofy and Tinkerbell

Are there any holiday or winter-themed items (Snowmen, Angels, Snowflakes, Santas, etc) that you collect? Dreidels (Hanukkah related spinning tops) and Hanukkiahs (menorahs specifically for Hanukkah)

Do you wear scarves? Mittens? Hats? I do wear scarves and hats

What is your favorite holiday or winter treat? holiday - gelt (chocolate coins) winter - hot chocolate

Please share a favorite Winter or Holiday memory. Although I have many holiday memories and I am sure some that stick out more in my memory nothing is more meaningful than the first time the Princess could recite the blessings over the candles all by herself. I was in awe. Miss Sunshine chimes in as well now and they sing songs. It just makes my little family complete that can say the blessings themselves and enjoy it so much. They can't wait each night of the holiday when I pull out the menorah, fill in with each candle and we say the blessings together.

Yarn and Crafting

Do you Knit or Crochet? Knit

For how long? 29 years

Do you like wooden, metal, or plastic needles\hooks? I prefer wooden needles

Circular or straight? I use both depending on the project

What sort of projects do you enjoy making? Prefer ones where i have no delay of gratification meaning I can knit them up quickly

What are your favorite types of yarn to work with? Cottons and soy

Do you spin or dye? No

Do you do other crafts such as scrapbooking or needlepoint or anything else? I make handmade all natural bath and body products

General

When is your birthday? October 3

Do you have any children? (Furry kind count!) I have two daughters 7 and 4.5 and a Tortoise (okay she isn't furry)

What are your favorite colors? Purple, lime for one daughter and pink for the other daughter

Do you have any allergies? Are you sure you want to ask that? ;-) Animal fiber yarns like wool, mohair, cashmere, etc. I just stay away from all animal yarns to be safe including silk. I am also allergic to lanolin and silicone (you’d find them in body products), cats, most dogs, cigarette smoke and fresh cut grass.

8 Random Things

2007-10-16T11:25:00.000-04:00

Ah yes, I just love to be tagged for these meme thinger ma bob do hickies. Thanks Jessi :-P so, here goes.....

1. Sometimes when the kids aren't home and I am procrastinating, I watch Little House on the Prairie

2. I love it that my little Princess is as an avid reader as I was at her age (and I still am)

3. I love to go to the Casinos in Atlantic City with my Mom. I just wish i had more money to blow there

4. As soon as I walk in the door at home, the girls and I kick off our shoes. All three of us prefer to go shoe-less.

5. I have no delay of gratification with new clothes, new items I've bought or even something I am knitting. This is probably why I prefer to knit something that doesn't take too long to finish.

6. I have been wearing glasses since I was the same age as the Princess is now but, she has much better eye sight then I ever did

7. It is getting to be too cold for me but, I can't see myself moving from this area any time soon

8. I have lost 50 pounds in the last 6 months

Hmm, now whom to tag....Mary, Holly, Melissa, Amanda, and Sally

Weekend Recap

2007-10-15T10:34:00.001-04:00

Such a whirl wind weekend!! It was busy, busy to say the very least.

Let's start with Friday late afternoon, Friday night and getting ready for the Princess' birthday party. The party was at my parents' house so after school we went over there to make sure the house was spotless, toys picked up, furniture moved, chairs and tables arranged, all the paper goods set out and some decorations were hung. Pink and purple of course. My Mom and I, when all was done, sat down to a nice relaxing cup of Colada Roobios tea compliments of Mary in some fine china cups and relaxed a few moments together.

Saturday was the birthday party. We had 16 kids ages 3 - 10 playing games, having story time, had some Tina the Tortoise time, lunch and cake, backyard time and then home. Whew! Two and half hours later I was tired. Clean up took longer than the party. Doesn't it always? Princess had a BLAST with her friends and cousins. So did Miss Sunshine, of course. So much so, Miss Sunshine fell asleep in the car home which she rarely ever does. The Princess received a TON of craft projects including several bracelet makers, a perfume maker (so she can be like Mom), some paint kits and a ceramics paint set. She was allowed to open one and she opened one she could do without much assistance one of the bracelet set.

Sunday, Ah Sunday, I had been looking forward to Sunday for a very long time. It was a local soapmakers conference one state over. I was going to get to see several friends I had not seen in, well, a year or two. A few demos given on things I don't make so they were interesting to hear about. Not sure I am going to have use for the information but, it is always good to have the knowledge base. Some of my favorite vendors were there so I picked up some ingredients I needed or wanted to try. I also picked up some of my favorite Vanilla, some Tangerine Essential Oil, a new Lime fragrance that is very sweet and crisp smelling, a scent called Blue Musk that smells fantastic. The Princess wanted me to get some Blueberry and my favorite vendor told be he was getting an amazing one so I am very excited about that.

I won a ton of door prizes including a HUGE bag of goodies, some Black Raspberry Vanilla fragrance, some soy melts (hmm, I wonder where those could end up? Jessi, any ideas?) and a few other choice tidbits that you never know where they might show up).

Of course my knitting went with me. A few of the soapers knit but, they didn't bring it or consider themselves not good enough to knit in public. I told them next year I will give a demo. One of my closest buddies told me that she has a room for me in her home if I would come and teach her how to knit. BTW, she lives in Puerto Rico.

Here is what I finished at the event:

Guess what it is ;-)

Renoir Landscapes Exhibit

2007-10-12T21:37:00.001-04:00

Both my parents had gone to Temple University at some point. For Temple Alumni, they offer some wonderful programs and they are allowed to invite guests. This time around they offered a lecture from one of their Art professors and a private tour of The Renoir Landscapes exhibit that is currently at the Philadelphia Museum of Art

It was a great experience! The lecture was terrific and the Docents gave such great and personal information about each time period and several of the painting. I truly wished they had these events more often.

HAPPY 7TH BIRTHDAY TO MY PRINCESS

2007-10-11T13:48:00.001-04:00

Where did the time go and when did she get to be a young lady? My Princess turns 7 today!! She is getting to have cupcakes brought into school by me and having a family birthday dinner tonight at my Parents' house of her choosing. Her party is this Saturday with her cousins and some of her closest friends. The main attraction for the party? Tina the Tortoise of course!! She can't wait!!

Happy Birthday to my big girl!!

Waiting Room Dishcloth

2007-10-11T10:43:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted an FO in a while. I think it is about time. I pretty much knit the entire thing in waiting rooms for appointments for both my daughters

It is the dishcloth for my swap pal in the Fall into Autumn Swap. I wanted to try something a bit different. Get back to my roots so to speak. Throw in a bit of a lacey feel and no pink or purple since it is for the Autumn. Now to remember what I did, write it down and repeat it some where else, LOL.

Tea Swap Goodies - The Photos

2007-10-10T13:47:00.000-04:00

A moment of peace and quiet. Just a moment, to take some pictures of my goodies. You get a groups shot, a picture of my favorite item and, of course, a separate picture of the yarn.

Mary definitely spoiled me and the girls, don't you think? Both girls had decided to walk off with different items but, I told them they weren't allowed till AFTER the photo session. Thankfully, it is one rule they follow. Not even the yummy chocolates sprouted legs, yet.

Isn't he adorable? I collect ALL things Goofy (you should see our family room) Miss Sunshine loves him too and wanted to play tea party with him. Um, NO! He went straight into the China cabinet and back again after this photo. He is a PERFECT addition to our collection!!

Last, but not least, Panda cotton in Seascape. The picture does not do the color justice. Another one Miss Sunshine attempted to runaway with since this is her colorway. It is gorgeous!! Definitely a step in a different direction for me but a good one. One I really need I think.

Mary, thank you SO much for everything!!!