Bring Your Earl Grey, Please

Today was a wonderful day to go visit Grandma Mabel (my husband's grandmother)!

We pack up our tea things...cream, raw sugar, black tea, cookies...because Grandma Mabel loves tea. I also pack up The Farmer's Daughter just in case she wants to watch a little Loretta Young. We get there, look around for Grandma in the little group watching the St. Patrick's Day singers in the entertainment room, but don't see her. Even thought she said she'd meet us. The girls and I troop over to her room to find her all tangled up in her clothing, struggling to get dressed, and slightly confused. She has bouts of short-term memory loss. But she emphatically insists that she wear her dress or "they won't allow her in there". She also wants her hair brushed, and jewelry donned. You know, all the things us ladies typically want done before we walk out the door. As we walk down the hallway she asks me if I mind if she sits by her favorite man (!) Then she gives me her sly little grin and laugh (!) Thankfully, we make it to the room before they are done. Grandma (and my girls) love their sweets, so they do not at all pass up the punch and cake. It's a sweet time and after it is over, we end up watching a little of Farmer's Daughter. Obviously, we are all tired. The girls are fussy and Grandma is sleep in her comfy chair. After she stirs, we make our good-byes, and she insists we take home all the oranges in her frig (that she saves up for months at a time from the dining room). We make our way back to the car. It is only once we are back in the car that I realize I have forgotten to clip her toenails and let her hold Katie like I promised. But again, I think we are all tired and it is time to call it a day.

What a beautiful outing! Grandma is a social bug (she is formerly a pastor's wife), so I know she thoroughly enjoyed showing off the girls to all her acquaintances at the retirement home. And I know she was thrilled to have company at her small place. It's always very relaxing and quiet when we go. I like it. And I always look forward to going back.

These visits make me miss my own Grandmother Louise all the way over in Missouri. How I wish I could jog over a mere 30 minutes in the car to see her. We are so close and yet many miles apart. We talk of many things when we're together, like best friends. A good reminder that I need to call her tomorrow.

When I am old and widowed, I hope my granddaughters come to visit me regularly. I hope they bring their black tea and old videos. And just talk with me. Just because they love me.

A midnight prayer for my children...

Dear Lord, I have this earnest desire for you alone to meet my children's needs. I say "children" and not "daughters" because we'd like to have more, but You ultimately know what's ahead.

I want my daughters and future little ones to know You deeply. May you be the sole source of their contentment. May you be their Rock in hard times, may you fill every part of their being with Your Love. You are Love, and none else can fill us like You do. There is no material thing or human being I can go to that absolutely satisfies me. Lord, please be that satisfaction for my children.

I want them to bask in Your peace. Even in the midst of troubles, may their soul be at rest. As they grow up, help them to know You alone are faithful. You always hear; You always answer. You never let go of your children. Thank you, Jesus, for holding me in the palm of Your hand. I ask that my children seek to meet Your approval, and that would include a hatred for sin, a dislike for the things Your heart is saddened for. May their paths never seek to meet evil and if evil meets with them, may their hearts be protected. But God, they are human, and if they sin, may they repent, seek Your forgiveness and be brought back to Your side.

I love my girls so much, Lord. It is hard to think You love them even more than that. But it's true. I will fail them from time to time, even in my efforts not to. I give you my children, even the future ones; I dedicate them to You. Just like I had to give you our Amelia, I give them to You and I ask that You do with them what You will. But Lord, may they find You at a young age. And even if they stray and make bad choices, may they come in brokenness, realizing You are the only answer. I would love for them to avoid the mistakes I have made in my life! But I know You have a plan for each of their lives. And you redeem what Satan means for evil. You are goodness, faithfulness, righteousness. You are Holy. There is none like You.

Might they experience Your unfathomable grace, no matter how painful it may be.

Thank you, Lord, for saving me. For washing away the sin in my life; for making me a new creature. Make me an example for my children. Help me to raise them with Your Love and guidance, because it's so hard to do it in my own strength.

Amen.

More Stitches

Our company taxes are due on Tues, so we have been scrambling around the files like a couple of laymen trying to save money by using TurboTax and not hiring an accountant. :)

But I think we are done. There is always a figurative sigh of relief when taxes are over. And every year we vow we will keep better records next time. Cheers to having a new computer that will help us do just that.

We recently purchased an hp from Costco. We are very glad we did! With a 23" screen, I can see Solitaire from the other side of the room; it's amazing! But seriously, this more stable, dependent computer vastly outdoes the portable laptop, which was unfortunately dropped by me :( It still works (wow) but is snail-pace slow. We will not be fixing it anytime soon, however.

I have been crocheting more. I am excited to have finished two hats and a wool soaker over the past three days. Perhaps I will take pics once I have gifted the items. The wool soaker, heavens to betsy, is HUGE! As I was rounding up row 33, I did notice it was large, but thought, well, it's what the pattern said! But, the pattern also said, you could make it smaller/larger depending on the measurements. Silly me. I didn't think of that. But here is the link for the Zoe Soaker. Keep in mind, you may want to do several rows less. The easy way to measure, is just fold it in half (hamburger-style) and see how it fits before you're finished.

One of the hats is made from black, ultra-soft acrylic yarn. Here is Olivia's Butterfly hat pattern. I made it for a woman, so I made the stitches a bit looser and increased after row 5. This is my favorite design so far. Simple, but vintagely (is that a word?) chic. I've had several requests for this hat already! Katie is my little model :)

The other hat I will have to describe later, as it is for someone who may be a reader :) However, I can say the hat is in Sugar n' Cream cotton yarn, in Denim. Denim being a myriad of light blues. Think I mentioned before that S&C yarn, well, cotton in general, is my fave yarn to work with! I will post pics once I gift it! I am sorry I can't post photos tonight. Since the computer switch, I haven't had time to upload the software for my camera.

I am looking forward to making a couple more hats for friends and yet another gift for a baby boy. Can you tell I am hat crazy? I was just telling my husband last night why I love hats. I am all about finishing, and smaller projects are easy to finish. I also get impatient. I want to try one pattern while I'm still working on another!! Unfortunately for my family, I have discovered a few local yarn shops. And just when they thought that had seen enough yarn!

I do not think I will ever crochet big articles of clothing or big blankets. They take WAY too long and besides, I would rather sew a dress or skirt. However, I don't mind crocheting baby or little girl's clothing. They are small piecework.

Speaking of sewing, I am still at work on a project for a dear friend's baby boy. I am late; he is now 3 months old. I finally received my mother's sewing machine as a gift, but then I had to learn how to use it. Next, I had to find a spot to use it....the only area being either my kitchen table or the nursery; the nursery not being compatible during nap time, and the kitchen not compatible during piano lessons and life in general. Anyway, I finally attempted the finishing touch on this project...and had to tear it out! It was totally crooked! This is my first project solo, so I know I did something wrong. Wish I had a friend (hint, hint, Susi) to come over and give me tips. Anyhow, I ended up back where I started and am gathering the bravery at a second attempt. I just have to calmly remind myself that everyone has to start somewhere.

And now I have this inkling that I'd like to sew the girls' Easter dresses. Dare I try? Goodness' sake, I am having a hard enough time with this simple project. I have simple, but pretty pattern from Making Children's Clothes by Emma Hardy. My wish is to use satin material, but is satin good for beginners? Well, I shall soon find out.

Since I have been in this "cloud" of sorts, of paperwork, semi-normal life begins once again on Monday. Back to ballet, piano lessons and schooling. Ahhh....the comfort of normalcy. Even if it is the daily grind, it is our daily grind :)

Yarns and Such

I have decided to re-purpose this blog! Or, just add to it. In addition to the random topics I write about, I am turning this into a crochet blog! Complete with pics, patterns and the occasional *wink* mistake, just to remind you that I am still learning.

To make it official, below are some recent projects I've completed:

Do you see a common, ahem, pardon the pun, "thread"? Yes, I am ecstatic about hats! I love trying all new kinds and then the best part, giving them away :) B and K are my sweet models :)

Please excuse the terrible picture of me. But kudos to Brilla for taking a photo of the bobble hat. I think it is cute for kiddos, but will skip wearing out in public on my head!

I am thinking that I very much like working with cotton yarn. Soft and sturdy. Also, the colors are brighter. I worked the pink butterfly cap B is wearing in cotton yarn, Sugar n' Cream. I can't wait to go to a local specialty yarn store and see what they have in stock.

The hat below is in wool, which I prefer for winter. I went hog-wild at a yarn sale they were having at Michaels earlier this week. Most of it was red-tag clearance!!! I am trying some cotton/acrylic. It is soft like cotton, but a tad stretchier. I also wanted to try the tweed blend...and the bamboo...but alas, can't get everything. I will just have to go back. Ha.

The above leggings turned out so well! Except for the strange seam I have going on (because I didn't pull up a loop when I connected). But even the seam can go in the back and they look so cute when B wears them to ballet class.

I am almost finished with my next project...can you guess what it is?

A Life Gone From this Earth

On February 5th, our friend, Paula Lofgreen, went to be with her Lord Jesus. What a celebration! She had suffered a long road of cancer and is now breathing fresh, clean, heavenly air.

I have been surprised at the emotional roller coaster I have been on since her passing...

For the first few days, I felt this heavy, sad burden that wouldn't leave. Every time I felt it, I would just go to God in prayer, pour my heart out to Him, ask Him to be with Paula's family. It's only natural to feel this way, but at the same time, the feelings have caught me off guard. I didn't expect to feel this way. I can't tell you how many days I've just had to stop and cry, unable to do anything for a while.

Every time I think of Paula's grown daughter (who was a best friend in my teens) and her two children having to go through this loss, my heart lurches for them. The tears come. Imagine having your mom gone at 32. Wow. My mom lost her mother at age 23 and that was extremely hard for her, especially since she didn't have the knowledge of the comfort of the Lord Jesus. But when I empathize with Paula's family's pain, again, I give it to God, because He's the only one who truly knows pain and can truly heal. Then I think of the eldest granddaughter, the same age as Brilla, I can't imagine losing the Mema who used to bake, catch crabs, and just do fun stuff with you all the time.

Every time I think of Cass (Paula's husband) and the Love he has lost until we join Christ on the other side, I think of how empty he probably feels. How he likely experiences peace, pain, and heartache, strength, all simultaneously. Being a widower at 50 is hard. When he gets home, he no longer has Paula to come home to. He will be on a long road of healing.

So, in a way, it's like I'm grieving too. Although our families are not super close as we used to be, all these memories of Paula keep flooding back. Our families used to be like one big family. We did Easter and other holiday dinners together. Neither of our families had relatives in the area, so we took their place. We even had a project where we painted each other's houses. Yeah, crazy. We watched Beethoven at the theater on Christmas together. All the picnics, home school field trips, sleepovers, and such. I find myself digging out old pictures and scrapbooks. The memories just keep flooding their way in...

The biggest anchor has been to pray, but also to remember SHE IS WITH HER SAVIOR. We will see her again! It seems so far away, but it's not really. And instead of suffering with each respiratory attack, she's up There preparing the huge Feast, or whatever special job God has for her. She's worshiping her Almighty God! Praising her Maker! What could be better than that?

Her memorial/celebration service is this Saturday. I am going to bring a handful of tissues because there is no doubt I will cry. Okay, sob.

Too bad you could not have been at this huge party in your honor, Paula. You would have loved having your family and friends all in once place! In some ways, it feels like you could not be gone. That you're still at your house in Steilacoom, laughing, smiling and encouraging others like you always have. In some ways, it's almost like my own mother has gone. Can't wait to see you on that Shore!

Just saw this at TJ Maxx yesterday. Normally $59 on Amazon, it was $12.99. For your curiosity, it's a Legnoart Cremeux Milk Frother. Isn't it pretty?

Juggling

I know I only have two kids, so if you have more than that, you will likely find my post below to be shallow and a big whine. But here goes...

I'm having a hard time juggling everything!

With home schooling, bookkeeping, teaching piano, cleaning my house, and running errands, I find that more than one of these gets overlooked until, bam!, it must needs be done right now!

My frig is a disaster, my floor needs to be mopped (mind you, I don't have a huge kitchen to mop, but smaller ones do get dirty faster thus needing to be mopped more frequently), my bathroom is always behind on a scrub (amazingly, I did clean it last week), and dusting rarely gets done (except every time my husband notices it and goes "hmmm...it's kind of dusty in here...").

Also, I have a hard time getting out with other mom-friends and their kids. We have like, one day of the week for freedom, and usually that's spent catching up on things that get let go! I've tried scheduling. Believe me, I am a schedule maniac. But you can't always schedule everything. With kids, things come up unexpectedly.

Don't get me wrong, I like being busy. In fact, I probably asked for it. I seem lost and restless if I'm not preoccupied. But often, it catches up with me and chokes me and I feel stressed.

Do any of you, my dear friends, have keys to managing your time? Any empathy?? :)