Two Black Sheep

Everything

If you were ever to visit Chez Lola in the evening time, this is the first thing you'd see.  It's how I'm spending most of my nights.  Covered under 2 blankets & working very hard on the top one.  I'm sort of neurotic about it.  Since we're having another boy, we don't have to shop & I believe he needs something all of his own.  Sure he's gotten a couple new things, but just a couple.  We're still looking for a nice little "Welcome Home" gown.  How I wish they made gowns in sizes larger than "Newborn".  Gus wore a gown for a long time.  Since he was well out of the newborn size at the time of delivery you can guess how snug he felt.  They're just so much easier than trying to shove little legs into slots.

I was on the phone with Ava yesterday & I was trying to explain my pregnancy fears.  With Gus, I was worried about how many t-shirts we had (plenty), would someone show me how to change a diaper (never changed one until we got home), would the nurses be offended when I called SK a 'muther fucker' (never did...still surprised), etc.  Obviously, I don't have those fears this time around.  Now I have completely irrational ones.  I know that I'm insane, but I take comfort in that fact.  But here they are:

I fear that I'll be one of those women that have had the baby cut out of their womb by some stranger:  When some creepy guy asked how far along I was, I lied.  He was practically standing on top of me when he asked.  He was a security guard with a gun, so I felt justified.

Whenever I've got a particularly stubborn poop, I have a fear that I'll push myself into labor:  No one.  NO ONE tells you that the act of pushing out a baby, is the same act of pushing out a large shit.  Make no mistake, the miracle of life starts off filthy.  Sorry if that offended anyone, but it's true.

An elbow to the belly is going to create a nice dent in TBA's head:  If Gus props himself up while we're reading a book or if an over-zealous shopper doesn't see me, I feel the kid get bumped.  Great there's a great reason for him to blame me for his wonky look.

See, I told you, irrational.  I have some very real fears, but I don't feel like talking about them yet.

I'll leave you with a nice preview of my finished Advent Calendar.  SK was very concerned that I was going to photograph & blog about the project prior to the rest of the Christmas decorations being set-up.  Once that's done, I'll take plenty of pictures & leave details.

-Lola

P.s. If anyone with Photo skills can tell me why my pictures are turning out dark, I would love an answer.  Even on Auto & with a Flash, they come out dark.  Photoshop has been my friend.

Sweet Potato

I've been a bad bad blogger.  I haven't posted in a while.  I read skim my Bloglines, & I rarely comment on other blogs.  I've become a lurker again.  I have a feeling that my current bad habit will start to fade very soon.  Since I missed the Thanksgiving posts, I thought I'd post what I've been thankful for the past 3 days.

::Washable markers::

Gus has been coloring all-day & all-night.  It's a riot to see what he's creating.  When you ask what he just finished, he'll causally say "A man sitting in a car with his dog."  Hmm?  Beautiful.  He's pretty good about keeping the art on the paper, but when he does slip, it cleans up easily.  Thank you, innovation! 

::A hobby that will keep my boys warm::

I almost forgot that I made Gus a Wallaby this year.  It still hasn't been blocked, which also means that it remains nice & scratchy.  He didn't seem to mind.  I still haven't figured out why he was playing with tongs.  What I have figured out is that it's easier to stop trying to "figure" out a 2.5 year old.

I'm slogging away on TBA's blanket.  I have about 1.5 blocked rows until I can scratch it off my list.  I'm constantly picking this thing up because it needs to be done prior to his arrival.  I'd love to add a border, but we'll see when I BO the last stitch.  If I'm in the middle of a contraction, this will be a borderless blanket.

I also started the Beer Mitts from the latest Stitch n' Bitch book.  I had SK flip through the book & see if anything appealed to him.  He's such a picky dresser that I felt confident he wouldn't find a sweater.  I knew he'd be attracted to the fingerless mitts & the dead teddy bear.  Since he's in his 30s, we went with the Beer Mitts.  I'm using Cascade 220 & my Knitpick Options.  This project has renewed my love of Cascade 220.  The color & quality of this stand-by is fantastic.

::A good muffin recipe::
I haven't had any cravings with this pregnancy.  Zip.  There's nothing that I must eat, but I do love baking muffins.  Maybe it's just the ease of grabbing one before I hit the road.  I'm not sure, but I've tried several healthy recipes.  I have a really good one from Cooking Light, but now I've found a clear winner.  Recently, I picked up Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food.  We don't have an issue with Gus & vegetables.  We have more of a "I-Don't-Need-3-Meals-a-Day" issue.  But if you can squeeze more vegetables into meals & desserts, why wouldn't you?  We've made a couple of the dishes & tonight is the meat-loaf & mashed potatoes.  Both have an enormous about of carrots & cauliflower purees mixed in.  But I really bought the books for the breakfast & dessert options.  Yesterday, I made the Peanut Butter & Banana Muffins.  God gawd, people!  If you love peanut butter, make these muffins!  It's just a plus that they're made with whole wheat flour & carrots.  SK didn't enjoy them as much as I do, but it had nothing to do with the added vegetable.  He just didn't like how much they taste like peanut butter.  More for me, honey.

So that's my "Thankful" list for the past 3 days.  I've also got to say a huge "THANK YOU" to Ava for coming home.  I'll be back & ready with a nice knit-worthy post.  I've got a hotel trip this week.  Translation: Lots of knitting time.  I've also got a trip to Ikea scheduled.  Translation: Stuff to store my knitting notions.  Oh & meatballs!

Bad knit blogger,

Lola

Stuttering

Yesterday marked a big day for me as a mom - the girls went through security at Newark by themselves and flew without any accompaniment. Doesn't sound like a big deal, correct? Well, that is where you would be wrong. They are two years too old to have a flight attendant check in on them or to have their dad or me walk with them to the gate, and - despite what Continental's website says - we couldn't request a gate agent walk them to the correct gate (we tried and the "polite" rep at the check-in said no). So, off they went, calling us as they made it to the gate, got on the plane, landed in Orlando, and when their grandparents met them in the terminal. Pretty easy-peasy save for a mother who is slightly paranoid about their safety. Can't wait for the first day of college! I'm wondering if it is too early to lay the ground work for a six-week supply of Paxil.

After they were safely at gate C123, the Flyer and I made a quick trip into New York. I am still amazed at what one overhears on the train ("Do you like banana pudding?" Interesting, but really - banana pudding? "Why do you think you could be in a room with eight naked women and be okay?" Is this my stop? Fuck) Lola thought we were nuts to take off for the city on Black Friday, but it was far from crowded. Sure, some places were a mad house - a mad house, I tell you - but it didn't feel any worse than any other time I have been in there. The only things we must learn are that items on a map appear much further away than anticipated and the numbers in addresses have no direct correlation to blocks. After the Flyer wondered aloud if I was up for walking four more blocks from School Products to Forbidden Planet ("Honey, we're at 1201 Broadway and we need to walk to 840 . . . it's not that far"), I called Mom and asked her for explicit directions to Purl. Considering it was only a mile to Sullivan Street, and nearly a half-mile back to the last Subway that I saw, we hoofed it. I don't think that I adequately prepared him for the itsy-bitsiness of either of the Purls. He sat on a bench outside of Purl, taking in all the confused looks of people passing by. Lola called after my purchase in Purl (the exquisite Manos Silk Blend below for which I lovingly blame Margaux) and asked if she would fit inside. Truthfully, you would sweetie, but it wouldn't be fun and you might be the one making the heroin cracks . . . not me.

I tried to keep the fabric purchases to a minimum since I still don't know what I am doing with all of it, but pink and black were the colors of the day. Next week, I'll try to scan the fabric that I have and get started putting them on Flickr. Our school has Secret Santa coming up and I pulled one of our awesome school nurses; she creates some of the most stunning quilts so I picked up a bundle of fat quarters at Purl Patchwork for her. In addition, I bought some camel at School Products with the intention of making a scarf using the flame stitch pattern from one of the Walker books. Needless to say, I will get started on that once the Trellis and Leaf Shawl is done (it's terribly boring to photograph - sorry). I am down to six repeats and then the border . . . maybe I'll start it after the repeats are done.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and if you have Monday off like I do (benefits of living in a region that still "treasures" the first day of deer season . . . I just "treasure" the day off), get some knitting done. It's crunch time for the holiday season after all.

Ava

PS - Girls, if you are reading, miss you muchly!

Sonnet

Since tomorrow is Turkey Day, I thought I would post this fun. While searching for information on when Cider Moon might be back selling yarn, I Googled their name and "legal troubles" and stumbled upon a meme on Lyndsey-Jane's blog. She said she saw it on a friend's FaceBook, hence some of the questions that seem unrelated to one who is already married with childen (who most likely will steal this for their FaceBooks). Here's the deal:

1. Put your music player on shuffle
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question even if it doesn't make sense.


And for the record, no matter how much it looks like I might have tweaked the answers, these are the "answers" to the questions. Have fun, enjoy, and let me know if you play along.

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
Krafty – New Order
WHAT'S YOUR OUTLOOK ON LIFE?
In My Life – Johnny Cash
WHAT DOES YOUR FAMILY THINK OF YOU?
Mad About You - Hooverphonic
WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Win Some, Lose Some – Robbie Williams
WHAT DO STRANGERS THINK OF YOU?
Black Betty – Ram Jam
WHAT DO YOUR EXS THINK OF YOU?
See the Constellation – They Might Be Giants
HOW IS YOUR LOVE LIFE?
Ragoo – Kings of Leon
HOW WILL YOUR LOVE LIFE BE IN THE FUTURE?
Stings That Tie to You – Jon Brion
WILL YOU GET MARRIED?
Forever My Friend – Ray LaMontagne
WILL YOU HAVE KIDS?
Take Me Out – Franz Ferdinand
ARE YOU GOOD AT SCHOOL?
Man With the Bag – Diana Krall
WILL YOU BE SUCCESSFUL IN LIFE?
Chelsea Dagger (Live) – The Fratellis
WHAT SONG SHOULD THEY PLAY ON YOUR BIRTHDAY?
El Tango de Roxanne – Ewan McGregor
WHAT SONG SHOULD THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Sparks - Coldplay
THE SOUNDTRACK OF YOUR LIFE:
Go Away - Royksopp
YOU AND YOUR BEST FRIEND ARE:
12:51 – The Strokes
HAPPY TIMES:
Babylon – David Gray
SAD TIMES:
Triple Trouble – The Beastie Boys
EVERY DAY:
I’m Gonna Blow Your Mind – Carly Hennessy
FOR TOMORROW:
(Another Song) All Over Again – Justin Timberlake
FOR YOU:
Where the Streets Have No Name (Live) – U2
WHAT DOES NEXT YEAR HAVE IN STORE FOR ME?
The Real Slim Shady - Eminem
WHAT DO I SAY WHEN LIFE GETS TOO HARD?
O Green World - Gorillaz
WHAT SONG WILL I DANCE TO AT MY WEDDING?
The Natural Theme– Randy Newman
WHAT DO YOU WANT AS A CAREER?
All That I Got (The Make Up Song) - Fergie
YOUR FAVOURITE SAYING?
4th of July – U2
HOW WILL I DIE?
Is It Any Wonder? - Keane
THE SONG THAT YOU'LL PUT AS YOUR SUBJECT?
Sonnet – The Verve

Ava

Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex

Only because Lola hates that song did I pick the title . . . that and it can't hurt to have 'sex' in the title. Obviously if I am posting at 9:40 AM on a Monday, there is something amiss with the weather. This being the Poconos, that could mean rain, snow, sleet, hail, or sun . . . today it is a combination of the first two and a half. Lucky for me, I can post before the holidays and parent/teacher conferences, which begin tomorrow at noon.

I probably should have guessed that this wouldn't be an easy trip when I sat on the plane in Newark for 45 minutes waiting to take off and then another 30 for reasons unknown. Needless to say, I was thrilled to touch down in Columbus and see Lola in all her big-belly glory. Yes, sweetie, you are big . . . but only in the tummy. Betty likens it to how Bridget Moynahan looked before her little one hatched. From the back, you would never guess Lola was pregnant, even when she was running after Gus in the fabric store on Friday morning (question: why would a store in Columbus, Ohio, invite Amy Butler to town for a trunk show/book signing on the day of the OSU/UM game?). Mom was suitably surprised when I rang the doorbell so that was nice. The Other Sister was also surprised as were her kids. I think I had more fun this weekend playing with the kids (or getting them riled up with "disgusting" talk of farts and poop and burps). Beaner, our niece, wears a lot of pink, but she is as rough and tumble as they get. I started a "Sassafras" club with her, probably because I knew it would irritate the Other one. Gus was as hilarious as ever and made ups songs for every occasion ("Grandpa said 'Lay back down and go to sleep' then Ava came and got me up") and continues to make me laugh on a regular basis. Lola, you have a great kid there and TBA already has a very loving brother.

On the knitting front, I actually finished something - amazing, isn't it? The first Veil of Leaves sock is done and was autumnal in nature. I had just enough to get to the toe so that's where I started with the Oregon Red Clover Honey. Not surprisingly, I forgot to write down the directions for the star toe, but Betty rescued me with a quick reading of the directions. Thankfully I brought along the Plane Project from the summer and got through about four repeats. Amazing how this project comes back to you. Because of the three hour delay, on and off the plane, the knitting kept my attention away from all the bumps and ill-behaved fliers with me. Note to other passengers: a shrill laugh is not charming, neither is making comments about how much the carrier owes you for your wait. For the young lady who had a panic attack, I felt your pain, both for the situation and for the stares of the other passengers. Thanks to the pilot who said he would get us there before the day was over and just call it "same day service" - much appreciated. To my seat mate who merely smiled, said how pretty the yarn was, and then never said another word - THANK YOU!

Meijers in Springfield had a bevy of British candy bars; many literally jumped into my shopping cart. The kids and the Flyer got some candy . . . I had some nifty tees waiting for my arrival! If I don't post before Thanksgiving, may you all have a happy and stress free one. Enjoy your families and take some time for knitting. Since it will be a traditional Ava Thanksgiving, that means ordering most of the food from Wegman's and spending time without washing tons of dishes. The girls leave the day after Turkey Day for Orlando with Bunnylips and family, so the Flyer and I are considering a quick run into the City when we drop them off at Newark - crazy, don't you think?

Ava

PS - Happy birthday, Tricia! Lucky you - getting to spend it with your kids on a snow day!

Oh Timbaland

Lola just got back from Florida and she is swamped (I'm sure those emails will get answered). Needless to say, the trip was filled with, "Are you sure you are having just one?" and "Maybe they screwed up the due date," and "December 18 . . . you'll go December 18." From me, she received multitudes of texts, most of which consisted of "People are asses" and "So, have you heard and good fat jokes lately?"

I feel so bad for my poor sister. I mean, she is desperate for a glass of Merlot and SK really isn't a wine drinker. What is a sister to do? What is a sister with $258 to spend and close availability to an airport to do? What is a sister with $258 to spend and close availability to an airport and need of a mental pick-me-up to do? We'll post photos on Monday . . . I'm on the 8:00 PM flight to C-Bus tomorrow. I'll think of ways to insult you on the way, Lola!

Ava

PS - The other sister flew home to see Mom and Dad, so I really decided to surprise them, but Lola having a crap-ass of a week didn't hurt either.

Taps

I could use a nice glass of red wine.  Not the standard size glass, but the Mom-size glass.  For years our mother thought that 2 maybe 2.5 glasses of wine were in a bottle.  When I told her it was more like 4, she laughed.  But I want/need a glass of Merlot.  I'm not opposed to the idea of just one, but why buy a bottle when the rest would go bad?  SK is not a wine drinker, so I have no one to share with.

The past 2 weeks have been brutal on me.  This is a very busy time of year for my job.  Everyone wants to see you before the holiday rush, & my company also holds its annual sales meeting at the same time.  Brilliant.  One & half states is difficult to handle every year, but tack on another state, & watch me sweat.  Driving long distances has always been exhausting, but driving with a huge low hanging belly gives new meaning to exhaustion.  During the drive, TBA & I have been having wonderful poking battles.  He'll poke & stay put.  I'll poke to put him back in place. 

To make things even more wonderful are people's comments.  Ava told you about the cunty woman in the rental lot, but it isn't just a Once-a-Week comment that sends me into rage.  One man, after asking my due date, explained that my baby was definitely ready to come out.  Then he reminded me that it was TBA's lungs that were keeping him in my womb.  Uh-huh.  The next day, a Barista shared her own labor & delivery of her twins & then asked if I were having just one baby.  "Not two, " she asked as she passed my latte.  Nope.  Finally a woman told me that carrying around a big purse wasn't helping the strain on my back from my big belly.  Thank you.  I know that these people are trying to relate & be nice, but how about just a smile.  Hell, touch my belly. 

I have had 2 separate occasions when people have been very kind.  I've had to buy appropriate work clothing for my meeting.  On top of that horrible task, I got a cold & pink eye.  You can only imagine how glowing & gorgeous I am.  The 2 women that commented on my belly calling it cute & beautiful have no clue how they helped my day.  Maybe they could sense that my waddling ass needed it.  I didn't waddle with Gus, but TBA has turned me into a decrepit duck.  SK is always about 3 feet in front of me.  This is a complete role reversal for us, so he never realizes I'm back there until I snap.

Has there been knitting?  Sure, but nothing spectacular.  I've actually had to start a project so I could take something with me on the plane.  My other projects could fall prey to the TSA's trash can.  I'm not taking any chances with the Honeybee Stole or TBA's blanket.  I could stand to toss the knee socks, which I why I'm taking those with me.  Since I really was hoping to make Gus a sweater for the holidays.  I decided to start a EZ Hybrid for my airplane knitting.  This is my first time using Cotton-Ease.  For now, I'm loving the squish-ness & color.

Knitting wise I'm grateful for this trip.  If I were at home, I'd get sucked into a new project.  Oblique.  And once again it's a project that calls for my 2 mortal enemies, Heavy Worsted & Gauge Swatch in Pattern.  Oh how I want to vanish you both from my vocab.  If I were home, I'd be buying & swatching a shit-ton of yarn.  And for this reason, I think I'm going to stop reading January One.  That's right, I said.  Sure, I've stopped reading other blogs for better reasons.  Sometimes they get real preachy on techniques.  Only a couple blogs do it well & without a condescending tone.  Others have made me feel like I'll never measure up with my knitting or family life.  Others just start to annoying the shit out of me.  But I've had it with Cara.  She knits & blogs with passion.  We've all seen it happen.  Remember Jaywalkers, Miter madness, anything with Blue Moon?!  When she linked to the Knitty surprise, I knew my heart would be tormented.  Do I pick up the needles when I vowed not to make a sweater while pregnant?  Or set them down, but weep when I see beautiful Obliques popping up all of the place. So please Cara, stop pointing out great projects!  I just know that you'll crank out a gorgeous sweater & you'll make me feel like I can do the same.  And then there I am with an enormous belly covered in a sweater's sleeve that I won't be able to wear until next fall.  <sniff>  I'm thrilled that I'm getting on a plane & will be far away from the blogs.  Maybe when I come back, she'll have it finished & I'll live vicariously through her posts.  Who am I kidding?  I can't stop reading January One.  I can't quit you.

I'm done with my long winded post.  I'll waddle towards the couch.  Mourn my Buckeye's loss.  Dream of a nice Merlot.  And play Morse code games with TBA.  Until next week, which I'm already absolutely giddy about.
-L

Lazy Eye

Talk about a rough week! Lola is on the road, which is bad enough when she is not big and pregnant (thought you would like that, sweetie), the Flyer is in the city, which isn't that far but he is still away, and it is the end of the quarter, which means I am pulling my hair out. It's the "perfect storm" of non-knittiness! Only a sock can save me, in this case, the Veil of Leaves.

In lieu of current progress, one of the sights from our hike

Currently, I am down to the straight knitting on the foot, the easy-peasy part. The big question is will I have enough to make it to the toe or will I combine some of the Oregon Red Clover Honey and make it a  autumnal theme. Hmmmm . . . I have a sneaky feeling it is a fall theme here in the Poconos. I'll post photos of it later this week.

A new favorite photo of Betty and Veronica (flip the names, you'll have them straight)

I didn't talk to Lola today, which is just as well since this is the gist of her voice mail message. She dropped off her rental car and was picking up her own car. Keep in mind that she is pregnant and looks as if she is smuggling a basketball under her sweater in a sort of "Look at me! I'm not shoplifting" kind of way. A woman driving by rolls down her window and says, "You need to smile, mommy-to-be." Lola said she was very tempted to introduce the woman's toddler to a whole new vocabulary, one filled with colorful adjectives describing the lovely woman who just wanted to make my sister happy. This should be a memo to everyone: if you see a pregnant woman and she looks utterly miserable, schlepping to her car, don't roll down your window unless you are handing her some sock yarn.

Ava

PS - Did I mention that my Norwegian Sugar Maple in front of my house is still a beautiful shade of green? Yup, I should be raking in December.

Price is Right Theme Song

Great Cabling Gods!   Thanks for all of the suggestions.  Either you've gotten my cable bug under control or I'm running to the stash just to see what I can turn into a twisted mess of fiber.  I'll let you know next week.  But time for a winner.  I always plan on having Gus draw a name out of the hat, but tonight I needed him in bed more than I needed the drama of a 2.5 year old pulling names.  So thanks to the Random Number Generator, Em is our lucky winner (I've always loved her blog's name.  There are a shitload of knitting blogs).  Send me your address & I'll ship out a prize.

This post was probably more appropriate in the month of Socktoberfest, but I'll chalk it up to holiday jitters on why it falls in November.  I was doing a training today & when I looked up I noticed the entire store was decorated for Christmas.  That's plain ole disgusting, people.  Anyway back to my project... Before I tried a big pair of socks using the ML method, I made a baby sock.  That one baby sock hooked me.  Since that day, I've made one pair of socks on DPNs & I probably could have used ML (really not sure why I didn't).  A couple weeks of moving & cleaning around this sock, I had to come up with an idea for what to do with her.  I couldn't throw her out, but the yarn wasn't suitable for baby toes.  Maybe inspiration hit me from someone's website, I'm not sure, so I can't credit anyone in particular.  I just remember thinking that an advent calendar would be fun & awful cute.  Our Mom had one that by today's standards would not be safe.  It was a wall-hanging with pockets for little ornaments.  I'm sure that they were choking hazard filled with lead paint, but I remember getting really excited about hanging the day's ornament.  28 years later,  I wanted my own version of the holiday calendar.  And, really how can anyone resist miniature socks?  The socks are easy to crank out, but I didn't want to just sit & knit socks for the next couple weeks.  I also didn't want to buy yarn just for this little stockings.  So as I finished a pair of socks, I cast on immediately for an advent sock.  In the beginning, I was able to get a sock out of leftovers.  Lately, I'm having to mix it up with the heels & toes.  I should have enough yarn for 3 more socks, and that would bring the total to 25 socks.  My original plan was to knit to 31.  Do most advent calendars have 25 or 31 windows/doors?  I have no idea how I'm going to finish the project, but I'll worry about that when the socks are done.

Congrats again to Ms. Em & thanks to all of the suggestions.  I've got a couple books waiting for me at the library, so maybe I'll have a cable project by tomorrow.  Back to my socks!

-L
p.s. I think that we're watching Black Sheep tonight.  How fitting.