Almost June!

I cannot get over how FAST time is flying by. 2010 is like an eyeblink...sure there was a lot of shittyness to the beginning of it but its still moving at warp speed towards 2011! It's almost June for cryin' out loud!

Almost June means almost summer and almost summer means almost end of school and we all know what that means.

My going insane with The Bickerson twins. Oh yes. Its already started lately. Thing One and Thing 2 annoy the crap out of one another until one breaks and starts screaming or hitting. I won't lie. Its usually Thing 2 annoying and Thing One screaming. Like nails on a chalk board no matter how deep the voice is getting.

So, facing a summer of madness brings up the lovely debates on day camps. They are 11 and 13...they are getting a bit long in the tooth for day camps so we need to search out ones that cater to an older crowd. Did I mention that only one is open to the idea? Yeah. Fun.

In other dealings, summer's approach means the semi-annual changing of the wardrobe and this year mine sucks. Between what I am disposing of from winter and that which does not fit etc for summer, I have trasg bags of clothing to donate and nothing to wear that can be seen outside the home. This has brought also the annual delusion that I can sew myself some stuff. How hard can it be?

There in itself is my red flag. Whenever that phrse "how hard can it be?" comes up, I have been training myself to STOP and back away from the idea. Tiling my kitchen floor on the farm? It was very hard for such a simple thing. And apparently I can't even buy a pattern in the right SIZE let alone sew it.

Yesterday while out with T2, we went to Fabricville. Things may have gone better had I been alone and able to focus solely on the task at hand rather than constantly trip over my sidekick and answer his questions about how much longer this was going to take. They really need to install a waiting area in these stores so I can park a male with a book and say I'll be back in awhile, don't leave thios area.
Thus, I ended up with a misleading pattern that in NUMBER was the right size but in actual measurments was NOT. I discovered this while pinning the pattern pieces on my fabric last night.

To all my friends who find sewing so relaxing and soothing, I THINK YOU ARE MAD!! Nothing frustrates me and makes me cry quite so much as sewing. I contantly fuck up, mis-read instructions, buy the wrong size(this one's new actually), run a needle through a digit, break needles, mis cut, mis measure...you name it. Anything that I can screw up in sewing, I do. So why do I even try???! Because it is a deceptive craft, thats why. It looks SO EASY when you take a simple non-froufrou garment, break it down into 4 easy pieces to be sewn together. It even SAID easy on the pattern for this "one hour" sewing project that I bought the wrong size for and thus the wrong amounts of fabric. ARGH.

Anyway, I took said fabric that I'd been starting my practice skirt on and basically created a tube with and elastic waist band. The easiest skirt in the world. Now I just need help in hemming it. I will probably make the same skirt with my purchased fabrics too. One of which has lovely scalloped selvedge edges for a self hemmed skirt. I think anyways.

The Kria sweater has been giving me fits in the hood creation but a friend gave me a brilliant bit of coaching and now it will be ripped back during todays drive to Charlesbourg and restarted. Rather than doing a wonky bit of intarsia while knitting back and forth oon two different sizes of needles, I will continue the sweater in the round, through the neck and the hoodwith steeking stitches at the front and a marker for increasing the stitch count of the hood in the back. Its gonna be swell and will no longer drain me of my will to live. YAY.

Speaking of will to live, my Mom is feeling much better than she was when I last saw her. Apparently her potassium levels were all outta whack (too high she says) and it was making her weak, dizzy, ill feeling etc. Now she feels great! I am trying to convince her to come and visit us this summer for a week or two. She's never been here and it could be fun for her.

Recent changes in the household numbers: I'd committed to adopting a tabby and white kitten through my friend Elaine last week. He's very cute and almost ready to leave home. Then two days later, my friend Geeta called. Her 3 year old black male cat Oscar was not happy. She'd adopted him a year previously and he has never enjoyed indoor cat life. He's very vocal about the whole thing too. He constantly tried to make a break for it when the front door opened etc. So she called me, her cat loving friend in a much quieter neighborhood to see if I would give him a chance at a happier life. How do you say no to a black sable cat named Oscar Peterson???? A couple hours later he was here. Lets just say I do not know HOW they lived with him for a year without giving in. I lasted two days and then he was let out. HE'S LOVING IT. And though he is still vocal, its more of the chatty in a loud voice variety of vocal. He musty have some Siamese or something obnoxious in his ancestry. This annoying feature of being very loud and never content in being inside or outside or the contents of his food dish has lead to his name evolving into Le Mouche!! He is our pesky pest of a fly. But he's very soft, cuddly, playful and lovable. Monsiuer Le Mouche...Mooshie-mu, Mooshoo...he gets it all from us grown ups but the kids are still calling him Oscar so far.

Wonder whats going to happen when the wee'un comes to us!? 3 adult cats and mischievous kitten. Should be interesting!

Our Spring of Renewal?

It would appear that our winter of discontent has passed,here at Chez Nous. I'm pretty sure my nerves of spaghetti couldn't take much more drama and the like. Things have settled down regarding my parents and things are lookin' good where Hman is concerned.

So good. It brings me so much joy to see him smiling again. He's embracing his new project with so much enthusiasm, its almost like he's been reborn from the ashes. He's been so strong that to have had him brought so low was very difficult to watch, for me and also for those who know and love him. Now, he's full of ideas and plans and optimism and its WONDERFUL.

I think the boys see a difference too. I see a lightness to them as well these days. They are relieved the dark cloud has passed on and that we have decided not to move house. This is a good thing.

Maybe its just the Spring talkin' here. The sun is shining, the lilacs are in full fragrant bloom, flowers abound in the neighborhood. It all conspires to have one feel that life is grand and embraceable again. The old adage that "This Too Must Pass" is true I guess. The sadness and worry of the past 6 months has lifted and exposed our faces to the lightness of Being again.

DAMN, it feels good!!! :oD

To all of our friends and family who listened and sympathised and commiserated and just plain oved us through it all, I want to say that I am extremely grateful for your positive vibes. All of you, even if you don't realise I mean YOU! Yeah, YOU! ;op

It was worth it

This past weekend I was in Toronto for the Downtown Knit Collective's Knitter's Frolic. Its a wee fair loaded with vendors of yarny goodness and knitting related doo dads and boy was it busy!

Friday morning saw me gently awoken by Veronik's dulcet tones warning me that it was most definitely time to rise and shine. I lurched upstairs and was joyously greeted good morning by the ridiculously good looking and chipper Husband of the House. I was showered and cafeinated and then we loaded the car. During that chore I twisted my ankle which proceded to hurt until I woke Saturday and it didn't. Once loaded up and ready, V and I hit the highway for Toronto.

We met Megan at Lettuce Knit and then headed to the Japanese Cultural Center to set up our booth, #40. This didn't take terribly long and by the time we were done we were ready for a drink and a meal. So, it was off to meet friend's of Veronik's at a pub.

The pub was small but wonderful. EXCELLENT food. I had the Smoked Salmon Nicoise Salad and it was delicious. Everything there was good. Such a cozy spot, loved it!

Saturday was the market day of the Frolic and we were on our feet and on our toes! Megan, Veronik, and I manned the booth and we met so many wonderful people!!! Issue two of St-Denis Magazine was met with great enthusiasm as was Veronik's latest book Knitting 24/7 . People were so happy to meet the knit samples from the book and magazines! Usually if they were impressed by the pictures, they were knocked out by the real thing. Megan thinks we did well in our sales but it would have been nice to take home less yarn. For our first time at the Frolic, we did great and have lots of ideas for next years booth set up.

Saturday night it was off to Julia's house for a smoked meat feast. Veronik had brought a glorious Schwartz's brisket with her and while we waited for it to steam, we drank wine and partook of the most yummy cheese, a cave aged gruyere from a local fromagerie that Julia likes. OMG....that cheese must be subtly laced with heroin because we could not leave it alone...sooooo gooood. We had such a fun time!!! Lots of laughs and good chat. My only regret is that I was driving so I had to consume less wine.

Sunday Veronik taught two classes and so was a very busy lady. I took the opportunity to do a wee explore starting with the neighborhood that Lettuce Knit calls home. Then I found a big used book store on Bloor that kept me quite occupied. I returned to the JCC too early so I found a quiet spot and a chair to doze off in untill the workshops were done. Then we gals were off to another friend's house for beer and bbq. YUM. Robin cooks a mean burger.

I was really really touched by how friendly and accepting Veronik's close friends were of an outsider. I never was made to feel like the odd one out, and was very comfortable with both Robin and Julia. It was an excellent trip!!!!!!!!!!

Monday saw us hitting the highway home and though we were later than we'd planned, we got home safe and sound and very very tired. My feet were swollen most of the weekend because of travelling etc and they are still not themselves, but I have to say it was totally worth it!!!!