Who's That Girl?

Oh, it's me. On the 60's. Random, huh?

It Was a Dark and Moderately Rainy Tuesday...

Doesn't have the right ring to it, does it? The kids are asleep and here I am at my trusty keyboard, with nary an interesting tidbit to impart. I'm blocked a bit, I fear. I haven't been doing this as regular as I had hoped, and it seems hard to regain the habit somehow.

I've been knitting, a bit. I'm trying hard to finish a sweater I started last October before I reach the sweater-versary of DOOM. Well, not doom, perhaps. But I want to finish it off and I am therefore slogging along at it. I know that once I hit November it will be gift knitting for Christmas, so I want to finish something neat for myself before that comes.

I haven't been reading anything new and interesting, either- I just started re-reading the "Anne of Green Gables" books, which I hadn't read since I was a girl. What lovely books they are- it just makes me think that Canadians are so much better than us in so many ways. Dang it, Canada!

Hopefully something interesting will happen. You know, sometime. So I can tell you about it. In an interesting manner. Maybe with pictures. Or something!

Happy First Day of Autumn!

Open Letters

You should go read this.



Punky thinks it is hilarious!

it was February just a moment ago...

I swear it was February just a moment ago... Wasn't it? I came home today to find that R had bought tiny pumpkins for the girls. Looking at the calendar, I finally noticed that this strange old summer's days really are numbered.

Given the way that it has gone, I am... not glad,.... but..... relieved that the summer will be over. This has been a hard year to bear for the ones I love.

I've been thinking about W. H. Auden lately....

"....The stars are not wanted now: put out every one;
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood....."

It's been a hard year.

Blerg.

Do you ever have one of those parenting moments where something you said comes back just a little twisted and so much more funny? I did, this week. (Background: I am apparently often telling Peanut how pretty she is when she sees herself in a mirror. I did not realize this).

I am wiping off the condensation of my side view mirror on the way to dropping the girls off at the 'sitter's house. Peanut sees me and asks me what I am doing. I reply, "I'm wiping off the mirror so I can see the other cars".

She replies, "So you can see how pretty they are?"

Um, sure.

A Brief Moment

Between work, the children, the craziness of this week, I realized that this month is coming to a close. One of my resolutions this year is to post a little more frequently here, so here I am, typing as the baby smears peanut butter on her head and says "babababababababa" as she smiles at me and as Peanut eats her toast and stops to check on her new goldfish (named Dorothy, thanks Elmo).


Since Flickr just sucked all my free time, here is a quick pic for a Sunday:



Have a good week.

Presque Vu

I'm a little late, but I have been thinking all week about the title for this post. It's a French phrase, that, according to the internet (and you know how accurate that is) means something like the English phrase "tip of my tongue", or as one definition wrote, "on the brink of epiphany", or yet another, "almost seen".

It's a phrase that I love, for it is pregnant with possibility. How could you not love the idea of "almost seen"?

The girls are asleep for once, and I am pondering what this new year may hold for my little family. Since Punky's birthday ends our years now, I think I am paying more attention to way our time is passing. The little ones grow unceasingly and (almost) unbearably quickly. I move more slowly and feel a bit more creaky.

So, I am trusting in optimism this year. That is my one resolution. I am giving in to hope. I am choosing to believe that this young new year will treat us all well this year, that good health will hold, old friends will reappear (here's looking at you, Boo), and that we will end this year better people than when we began it.

Cheers!

Got an iPhone

Yup. I feel so fancy. Maybe I will be a more frequent bloggist now. I would probably not bet anything on it but we'll see...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

What Happened to October?

Well, we were sick for what seemed like the whole month, but I somehow feel like I blinked and now it is dark at five o'clock and Thanksgiving is mere weeks (!) away. Christmas is just a few short weeks after.

Ow. That actually causes a pain in my temple to throb.

I'm not making this year. I have decided that I am just not going to knit gifts. No handmade by me. My time with the girls is just too precious. I may make a few sewn items (I have a specific thing in mind, a la this blanket from Handmade Home by Amanda Blake Soule), but I may not get anything actually done in time. I really want to knit for me this winter, and for the munchkins. It gives me a visceral pleasure to see my children wearing things I have made them, so I plan to make more garments this year. It just makes me happy to see those wonderful chubby legs wearing legwarmies I made. And sweaters and jackets to keep them warm.... It's just lovely.

Happy Birthday, Darlings!

It's my husband's birthday today. So here's a public "bon anniversaire!" I hope it was a happy one, even though there were no cupcakes, filled with pudding.

It's also the birthday of an old, dear friend (and her twin's). Love and kisses, I hope it was happy, too. Also, you are both older than me for the next three weeks, so ha-ha. (Please imagine that in the voice of "Nelson" from "The Simpsons". Thank you.)

I seem to have been absent from here longer than I expected, somehow. I hope I will be posting here more often, as I feel like writing is slowly coming back to me after a bit of a hiatus. It is late, so here's a catch-up, in photographs.

An October Sky



The LA Fair



The Pumpkin Patch





A Bit of Knitting



...and Halloween.

There Are Days That Remain In Memory

They aren't always special days. But occassionally, there are days that just, well, stick. Summer is fading (although the temperatures aren't dropping) and I am dreaming of fall. I ate lunch recently at Rutabegorz, in Tustin.

There was just something about the light that day, that made me feel as if summer was really going to end- that autumn was to begin, at last. There was just a golden, painterly quality to the light, I think.

I took a few pictures.

The February Lady, In Tweed.

I am knitting this sweater for me. I am setting aside the (irrational) knitter’s guilt over making anything for oneself and I am selfishly making myself one February Lady Sweater based on the design by Flint Knits, in Knit Picks City Tweed. The colorway I chose is Orca. I love this yarn- it is so soft and the little Donegal nups are making this one of my all time favorite yarns to work with. The sweater is squishy and lovely and I really can’t wait to finish it and to wear it.
 
There is one obstacle in my way.
 
I live in Southern California and it’s September. What this means, practically, is that it is regularly over 90 degrees here. It will probably continue to be over 90 degrees here for the next month and a half. I am knitting the second arm of this sweater, so I have a lap that is full of sweater. Did I mention it has been in the 90's?

Our vague “seasons” in Southern California are often lazy and they show up late, so that wonderful murmur of winter in the wind that knitters  know signals sweater weather doesn’t always show up until after Halloween. Our fall sometimes seems to begin at Thanksgiving, and many of my Christmases have been celebrated wearing shorts and flip flops.
 
Winter, to me, is actually almost Spring. Cold weather here is usually present from February to April, if at all. My February Lady is therefore appropriately named, as well as hotly anticipated.
 
Because I am so anxious to have this complete, I am sweating while knitting. I am knitting a tweed February Lady sweater in July, in August, and in September. I am knitting at the beach, allowing a little sand to be worked into my knitting. I am hoping this February sweater will hold the memory of this summer, tucked within the fiber. The hint of sand, the little bit of sweat and the above all the sunshine from this summer will be knitted into the very fabric of this sweater.

When February comes, as it always does, I hope that I will slip this wonderful tweedy Lady over my shoulders and I will remember the sensation of warm sand, slipping between my toes. I will remember my daughters’ laughter as they build castles in the shade of our beach umbrella. I will remember the delicious smell of coconut scented sunscreen, the sour-sweet taste of lemonade, and of the sensation of saltwater drying on warm skin. I will remember the sound of waves lapping at the shore, the white of sails against the blue of summer’s sky and I will remember the warmth of days spent with the people I love....

...when I wear my February Lady Sweater, in tweed.
 

Something...

I'm waiting here in the half light of our living room, waiting to see if the baby is really going to stay asleep tonight. I'm watching Michael Douglas and the lovely Frances McDormand in "Wonder Boys". Robert Downey Jr is confirming my belief in his outstanding abilities and Tobey Macguire should really get more work that doesn't involve a superhero costume.

I am so tired, I may have to put off watching the end for a couple days. It was such a good book. This is turning out to be a really great movie. Michael Chabon, from whence comes your ridiculous talent?

I'm going to bed.

I Need To Go To Bed

Wanna get past me? First you'll have to get past

Colm Tóibín

and

Benedict Kiely

Our Budding Artist

Peanut has been surprising us over and over this week with her art. She has been drawing animals that look vaguely like the animals they are meant to represent, and now she has been focusing on human representation.

Here is her portrait of me:



Note that I have two eyes (as I do), one nose (accurate), and one mouth. She's only two! I am extremely impressed by her chops here. I mean, I do spend a good portion of my life being impressed by her. I am also impressed that she knows that baby swans are called cygnets. I bet you didn't know that. Thanks, library!

We learned a bunch of baby animal names because we read this great book, "Who Are You, Baby Kangaroo?" by Stella Blackstone that both girls giggle at.

More soon

Today Was Lame...

... until Punky said "Ma-ma- mommy!"

Punky

She has hair like a little dandelion puff.



Chubby little cheeks.



And that smile.... Punky Doodlebug, I love you.

Milestones....

Peanut had her first haircut yesterday. She was very excited, since the hairstylist let her watch "Finding Nemo" on her iPod. (Note to self- must get "Nemo" on my iPod, so child can RELAX in traffic on the way home). Also, there was a lollipop. Her curls are very slightly tamed and less ragamuffiny. I don't think that's a word, but whatever.

Punky (the baby also known hereabouts as Dangerfeet) has decided to grow all her teeth in one go, so she went from no teeth to two teeth in a two day period. I think another tooth is on it's way, or she just likes to gnaw on the world at large.

Me? I'm just doing a little bit o' knitting. A little bit of reading. A miniscule amount of writing. Nothing too exciting. I have been thinking about Christmas, though. Is it too early to start fussing about that? Last year we had a (mostly) handmade Christmas, and I would really like to repeat it. But with different stuff. I think I may need to go and visit Knitty and Ravelry to get some ideas.

A Short List of Things I Like Right Now:

Powell's Sweet Shoppe::: Like a movie set of candy shop, only it's real and sooo neat. You can be a grownup and try the delightful sea-salt caramels (YUM) or you can buy a cow that poops candy. Your choice.

Mother's Beach::: No waves, a playground, cheap parking in the lot (free street parking), and lots of boats to wave at. Also, a high life guard to swimmer ratio. And close to my house, so that's nice, too.

The Splendid Table::: Did you know you can make iced tea without heating up water? I do now, thanks to the Splendid Table's free podcast.

These Mermaid Socks (Rav Link)::: This pattern makes me want to buy more yarn. Ack!

The Loopy Ewe::: Sheri is making me into a yarn freak. Last year this time I didn't even know how to knit. Dang, woman.

Anyhow, I will try and get some pictures up soon. Camera charger (my REPLACEMENT camera charger) has gone MIA. Wish me luck.

Happy Father's Day....