One More...

Take it all in, baby... notice that two C. Thomas Howell posters mixed in among the Duran Duran ones?

We Interrupt The BEA Blogging to Bring You The 80s...

Yes, those are patterned jeans. And no, those posters aren't randomly up on the walls; I used to have extensive layouts created, assuring that each member of Duran Duran got air time on their own walls. What?

BEA, The Madness Continues...

Okay, so I'd left off as I working myself into a frenzy describing the sweet swag from BEA. So, being mom of the year, most of the stuff was for Will and Alex. I'll pick up where I left off from yesterday...

- The Boy's Body Book, by Kelli Dunham from Cider Mill Press. I told Mike he can give it to Will... and he promptly chickened out. It's a cool book, written basically for ages 9-10 and up, and doesn't cover the terrifying stuff just yet. It's really about being a good friend, making sure boys don't bow to peer pressure, and starts to touch on the basics of just taking care of your body and such. I gave it to Will and offered to read it with him or have him read it and come to Mike or I with any questions. He sat down on the couch and curled up with it, so let's see what comes of it...

- The Castle Corona by Sharon Creech from Harper. Any book with a cover that resembles an illuminated manuscript is going in my bag. Nancy got an autographed copy, the lucky dawg.

- Peanut Butter & Jeremy's Best Book Ever! by James Kochalka from the Alternative Comics table. It's cute, it's about a cat who thinks he works in an office and wears a little hat and tie, and an irritating crow. Heck, I read it before I handed it off to Will. It's cute!

- Soupy Saturdays with The Pain & The Great One by Judy Blume. It's Judy Blume, therefore I must have it. Heck, I may even give it to Will when I finish it...

- The Thief Queen's Daughter by Elizabeth Hayden from Starscape. It's fantasy, there's a dragon on the cover, what's the question?

- Yo! I Know Stuff! Brain-Building Quizzes - Got this from the World Almanac for Kids table; Will is all about those quizzes and bizarre facts. Predictably, he grabbed this one first.

- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie from Little, Brown. I have no idea what this one's about, but it was all over the place at BEA and I had about three different folks hand me a copy. Let me know if you read it.

- The What's Happening to my Body? Book for Boys by Lynda Madras over at the Newmarket Press table. This one is for older boys; I'll hang onto it for a while. Can you guess I'm terrified of having an all-too rapidly approaching 'tween son? I'm arming myself with as much information as I can get.

- Fairy Haven & The Quest for the Wand, by Gail Carson Levine over at Disney Press. This is an example of me getting caught up in the freebie haze. I saw the title, figured it for some good fantasy to read with Will, and grabbed it, only to come home and see that it is a Disney Fairies adventure. After asking Will if he'd still be interested and getting the look of the century, I've decided that this will be a lovely addition to my 5-year old god-daughter's library.

- Nightmare Academy by Dean Lorey from Harper. Yeah, baby. Demon on the cover, spooky funky font - Will and I are all over this one.

- Pirate's Passage by William Gilkerson from Trumpeter. Yes, these books are in fact for Will, do you doubt me? He happens to be developing stellar taste in his literary genres.

- Alex and the Ironic Gentleman by Adrienne Kress from Weinstein Books. Another hot one at BEA, tons of them being given out. Kid frees his teacher from pirates. Whoo hoo!

- Homework Helpster Grade 3 from the Black Dog & Leventhal table. Cool little homework helper with its own little prop-up stand. Will gave me a somewhat hairy eyeball but accepted my gesture of love.

Speaking of hairy eyeballs, I'm getting one now, which tells me I've apparently overstayed my time on the computer. More to come...

Book Whore 2007 (or, Roe's Weekend at BookExpo)

I am a shameless book hussy. Those covers give me that sly wink, a subtle nod, and I'm all over them, caution flung to the wind. So you can imagine what it's like for me at BookExpo, when I'm in a place like the Jacob Javits Center - packed to the seams with books for the taking (for the most part).

I worked BookExpo this time around; normally I'm merely a visitor. Booth duty can be long and tough, but when you get a chance to wander every now and then, it makes it all worthwhile. Seeing so many of my friends was great, too. It's been a while for some of my Bookspan friends so it was a little like a reunion. And Nancy was there on Friday, so that was fun, chasing each other via voicemail to meet up somewhere (eventually, we met up - on the ride home that she and her parents were kind enough to extend to me!).

So where to begin? I brought home about 60 books and assorted other stuff. I got some great autographs and met some very cool people. Nancy got a crazy amount of autographs, I'm jealous. ;-) I did get Will a signed copy of Wizardology, which he was most excited to receive. I was Mom of the Year for like, five whole minutes or something. Wow.


I totally missed the Sabuda signings - he did like two or three - but I was determined to get this one. It is quite cool, and I'm sure we'll be curling up on the couch and reading this one after I get through Thor's Wedding Day, which I borrowed from Nancy eons ago...

The DC booth was rocking with grade-A freebies. Not only did I score tons of bookmarks for the kids, and buttons of Green Lantern, Flash and Superman, but I got hardcover copies of Justice (rocking the Alex Ross cover) and Identity Crisis, and a trade paperback of Watchmen . I also got two issues of Mad Kids magazine and an issue of Mad Magazine for Will.

Continuing in my "I'm a good Mom" vein, I scored more for Will and Alex:

- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TPB of Out of the Shadows from the Titan Books table. (They're also doing a Stargate: Atlantis companion, which I scored a copy of for Mike - I'm a good wife, too). And Supernatural fans, wait - they're doing companions for that show, too (which I'm probably going to have to get Will). Back to TMNT - it's penned by Peter David, so I may have to read it myself...

- signed copy of What Stinks? by Marilyn Singer for Alex. Come on, with a name like that, I was supposed to pass it up?

- F&Gs (folded & gathered signatures, kind of a version of a galley for picture books) for Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity by Mo Willems (Nancy got a signed copy... garrrr!), The Longest Christmas List Ever by Gregg & Evan Spiridellis (they're the brothers who did the hilarious This Land animation with Bush and Kerry; check it out on JibJab.com); and Do Unto Otters: A Book on Manners by Laurie Keller (complete with sheet of stickers!).

- Two more Hot Dog & Bob adventures, to go with the first two I picked up for Will last year.

- Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? by Eric Carle and Bill Martin, Jr. I was psyched not only to get copies of these books, but to find out that Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See? will be coming out in August. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? is one of Alex's fave books, so I was happy to bring him this news. He was even happier to get the poster.

Okay, I've got a lot more to describe but I'll pick this up tomorrow. I'm still exhausted. Later.

My Baby's Eight!!

Will, even as a baby, would ponder the mysteries of the universe...

So my baby turned 8 this week. I'm still not sure how exactly that happened. I feel like I just blinked and about 20 years of my life went on fast-forward. I have a son who is finishing second grade; who has developed a love of skulls, fantasy, history (we're currently debating the merits of the ancient Celts versus the Mongols), and video games. He plays in Little League, loves to ninja-attack his favorite uncles (hint - none of whom are related to him by blood), and at the same time, still crawls into my lap and hands me a book. Even if that means his legs are going from the edges of my lap and hanging over the couch legs, he still does it.

Happy Birthday, Baby. Mommy loves you.

Hey - It Was the 80s...

Little-known fact - Annie and I were up for replacing Vivian Campbell and Adrian VanDenburg in Whitesnake...

Hey, don't blame me - there is no product in this hair. Hormones caused this, and my well-known disdain for a hair dryer (I have better things to do with my time than spend an hour blowing my hair out straight, and it's dry enough, for Pete's sake) didn't help. But go ahead, suppress your giggles - or don't - and enjoy this little trip back to the late '80s.

Family Project...

So I've decided, after cleaning out my closet (see the post on Domestic Goddesses here), I've of course let my tangential mind wander again. I've decided that my copious photo albums - I'm not exaggerating here, I've got a lot - are in danger somehow of falling victim to some sort of natural disaster, so I'm scanning the photos and burning them to disc. (Yes, I know the discs can fall prey to a natural disaster or unnatural disaster too, but at least I'm doubly covered.) Of course, this will probably take me until the rest of my natural life, but hey - I need things to do, right?

Aside from alternately marveling and being mortified at some of my own hair and fashion choices (not to mention some of my family's), it's becoming a nice trip down memory lane. I haven't looked through many of these photos in a long time, and it's nice to see my Nana and my Aunt Do again. I miss them a lot. My Nana is probably laughing herself silly every time I ask my mom for advice on sewing a straight seam or show her proudly my latest knitting adventure. Nana tried to teach my mom all of this stuff years ago, only to have my mom stare blankly at her, then burst into giggles. So at least somehow, the gene got passed on. Kinda.

Seeing pictures of my cousin Tim still ache. He died way too young; I was newly pregnant with Alex when he died, so I pressed down a lot of the grief and anger because keeping my body healthy for my baby was the most important thing. It's been four years, and I notice it's starting to leak out in dribs and drabs every now and then. For some reason, I can't let myself just let go and grieve. Maybe I'm not done being angry yet. Maybe I'm just used to shoving something down until it doesn't show. Maybe it's a lot of things, an amalgamation of everything. But I find myself scanning through pictures with me and Timmy a lot more quickly than I do any other ones.

Love Office Fans...

Anyone counting unicorns or leprechauns? ;-)

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...and Goofball #2!

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Goofball #1 at Johnny Rockets...

To My Fellow Office-Fans Out There...

Gotta give a shout-out to the Snarkwife on this one. You know I immediately Googled "SchruteBuck" this morning, and her site came up. You ROCK, my friend. Now, if someone would just create a Stanley Nickel, I'd be thrilled.

It's gotten bad... just foraged and snarfed down some M&Ms left over from Valentine's Day. Anyone who knows me knows that unless they're peanut M&Ms, I don't bother. But I bothered. Grocery shopping this weekend, and I can finally get some healthy snacks back in the house. Gar!

I'm cleaning out closets today. Bleah. Gotta start getting rid of so much, I haven't done a proper spring cleaning in too long. Maybe if I feel better about dumping all the 'baggage', literally and figuratively, I'll get the reboot that I need.

I need to get back on track and get back to feeling good and taking care of myself. I'm tired of vacillating between self-destruct and barely maintaining. I've made such a major decision and it's taken so much crap off my shoulders, I guess I thought everything else would magically fall into place. But nothing really does that magically, does it? You have to work for everything you want. So now I just have to start working. Even if it's slow progress, it's progress.

And I really have to stop this mindset of eating all the crap in the house assures it won't be there to tempt me. Don't know how I fell into that trap, but it's got me. Yeesh.

Argh... Self Control, Please...

Mike, bless his heart, bought me three - count 'em, three - different bars of Lindt chocolate for Mother's Day. The first two - pistachio and toffee nut crunch - I was fairly judicious in my consumption of. But the third, Stracciatella - basically, cookies 'n' cream in a chocolate bar - well, I just sat down to work at my computer (I'm pulling together MQP's booth for Book Expo, baby! Whoo hoo!!) and now there aren't even crumbs to show this bar once existed. Wow.

I needs me some self-control. I was doing so well, too! Okay, no guilt. Back to square one. Ish.

At least there are no more Lindt bars in the house to tempt me, right?

Next Up... Lost

Tomorrow's the season finale, right? Something tells me there will be rage... on my part, that is. Last episode was so good - the past few episodes have really been very good, thankfully - so the fact that another season is coming to a close makes me nuts.

They've been wrapping up a lot of little things here and there, too, which is nice; it's like the first season and beginning of the second, where they would give answers to some things while presenting other things to think about. Hallelujah!

But one thing I haven't seen them get back to much is the numbers. Are they ever going to throw us that bone and tell us how the heck the numbers come into play? I need to know what the numbers mean, and how some guy in a mental institution knew what they were (remember, that's how Hurley got them).

And weren't we supposed to get more Libby flashbacks (I'm guessing via Desmond)? Hmm.

The big question, naturally, is what the heck happens to Locke. This is going to be soooo good...

Heroes Tonight!!

I am SO psyched. Every episode has been better than the one before.

BTW, I've started posting on Domestic Goddesses again, so click on over and read about my newest manic decision to redo my kitchen. Har, har, har...

The Best Part of Being a Mom

I was on CafeMom yesterday, and one of the questions posed was "What's the best part of being a mom?" As usual, I couldn't pick just one thing, so here's my response.

What's the best part about being a mom? Oh, that's easy. It's all about the hugs. You know which ones I'm talking about, those full body (literally - when they wrap their arms around your neck and their legs around your waist), squeeze you 'til you're both of out breath, giggly hugs. Or the sleepy hugs, the ones where they just sling an arm around your neck when you come in to kiss them goodnight just one more time. Usually accompanied with a crooked, sleepy smile and a murmured, "Love you, Mommmmm....zzzz..."

Or is it the gummy smiles of a new baby? Those are really good, too. Those first smiles, when you just roll your eyes at everyone who tries to burst your motherhood bubble by telling you that it's "just gas" and think, "What do you know about my kid? I just carried him/her inside my body for nine months, I think I know a real smile when I see it, thanks very much." I particularly love the ones that start out slowly, just like sunrise. A little smirk, slowly parting into a half-moon of lips, and ending with a full-on, toothless expression of pure joy just because you're standing there. That's the best part.

Or is it when you and your kids love the same things? When I sit next to my all-too-rapidly-approaching-8-year-old son, who wants me to sit with him and watch Star Wars: Episode 3 with him again because he knows that's the only one I consider even worth my time outside of the original Star Wars trilogy; the ones George Lucas originally conceived before a plethora of money apparently made him insane (Will disagrees, but what does he know? He's been tainted by CGI technology...) Or when we love the same parts of Lord of the Rings, and we scream at Gandalf together to watch out, that Balrog isn't really dead... Yeah, that's it. That rocks.

Oh, but wait... how about when your preschooler comes to you with a book, curls up in your lap, presents you with your favorite - Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus - and says, "Reading time is cuddle time, Mommy!" And proceeds to sit back in your lap like an easy chair, waiting for you to begin in your best Pigeon voice, and tell him the story about the Pigeon's meltdown. That's the best.

Um... but then there's when you're helping out at your kid's school book fair on your birthday, and he has his entire class wish you "Happy Birthday, William's Mommy," as they pass by the library on their way down to lunch. That's a tough one to beat...

Okay, just give me a while to think this through... I'll come up with the one thing, honest. Just give me a sec...

Garrrr!

Looks like Captain Jack Sparrow's crew has invaded my living room!

Bean Bag Fun

Alex finds a way to amuse himself while my mom and I shop yesterday...

Those giant Lands' End bean bags rock; I would totally outfit my living room with a bunch of them...

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One of the better things about freelancing... Spending time with Mommy friends and getting shots like this.

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Will and Alex kill time waiting for the photographer. I'm shocked they sat this still!

What the Hell?


Find out your Spider-Man personality at LiquidGeneration!

Um... dunno how accurate this one is...

How Cool Is This?

First Hokie KAL Scarf

Here's a shot of the first scarf I've done for the VA Tech KAL I'm involved with. It's the same yarn I used for my mom's collared wrap about a year ago, so it's a fine (DK weight) yarn I used size 6 needles on. It looks nice, I think, and my mom will be the recipient of the first scarf.

I was about to start another scarf when I realized I have way too many projects taking up needles that I need for more scarves. So I finished a sleeveless sweater from an Family Circle Easy Knitting pattern I started last month, just because it was 3/4 of the way done and I could feel accomplished. I finished it and blocked it last night; it's currently sitting pinned to my ironing board in my bedroom waiting to dry so I can seam it up. Yes, you read that right; I will actually seam it up. It's a new me.

I even got more work accomplished on a cute U-neck vest I am knitting myself. I got the pattern from the first issue of Knit.1 mag about a year or so ago, and fell in love with it. Of course, I didn't buy the yarn for it until earlier this year when I used my birthday gift card from Stacey, but hey - I bought it, right? It's a little more than halfway done, but of course, I need more yarn because I underbought. Argh. And that's the project that's taking up the two needles I need for more scarves. I think I'll just grit my teeth and use straight needles to keep the momentum going, scarfwise.

I have to split now, I have to go to Sears to get Will a new shirt for his Communion photos at 1 p.m. today. And I just saw that I have a Communion workshop for parents at Church from 11 to 1 today. So I have to bring Alex, which will be BIG fun. Gah!

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Finally finished the pillowcases I bought the fabric for a year ago!

When bad things happen, I'm one of those people who want to do something, but never know what to do. So I'm grateful to Cindy Cafaro, who figured out how to do something, anything, in the aftermath of Virginia Tech.

Mary Read
Hometown: Annandale, Va.
Age: 19 years old
Class: Freshman
Major: Undeclared
Location: Norris Hall
Related Links: Student, 19, with relatives here among the victims, (Rochester Democrat and Herald, April 17,2007)
Profile: Mary Read was a "fun-loving 19-year-old" who graduated from Fairfax's Annandale High School last spring, said her aunt, Karen Kuppinger of Rochester, N.Y.

Apparently, Mary was a knitter, too. Among some of her projects was a scarf that she made her grandmother. Her aunt, Karen Kuppinger shares:

"Here's a story about what a sweet, family-oriented girl she is," Kuppinger said. "The last time I saw her -- a year ago Thanksgiving here at my house -- she kept disappearing while she was here. I finally said, 'Mary, what are you up to? Are you reading a good book or something?' She was knitting a beautiful scarf -- a multicolored fluffy scarf like the girls wear -- for her grandmother for Christmas. My mother still wears it. She did very thoughtful things like that always and was very close to her mother and father and brothers."

Cindy decided to honor Mary's memory in the best way she could; she has organized a knit-a-long (I'm sure crochet-ers are welcome to join!) to honor Mary's memory, as well as the other victims. Participants will in this KAL will knit up their fluffiest novelty yarn into a scarf for an elderly person. Recipients can be loved ones or charities (e.g., nursing homes), but the gift will be made in honor of Mary Read. It's the simplest, more eloquent tribute and I'm happy to be a part.

You can check out Cindy's blog at http://maryreadmemorialkal.blogspot.com/, and e-mail her to join the knit-a-long. I will be posting pictures of my scarves (and scarves-in-progress) both here and on that blog (once you e-mail her to join the knit-a-long, she'll provide you with access to the blog).

Ghetto Knitter



I came across the most hilarious and true post today. While I do love myself the cashmere blends and the pricey yarns, I like to think that the craft store yarns do just fine by me - they sure as heck take it easier on my wallet. I know many yarn snobs tends to look down on this, and to them I say, "Buy my yarn, if it bothers you." Regardless - I'm not here to kick that debate into high gear one more time. But this post pretty much sums it up:

You Know You're a Ghetto Knitter If:

* Your fancy yarn comes from KnitPicks, or the clearance bin at the LYS.
* You don't understand why Plymouth Encore costs twice as much as Wool-Ease.
* You carry around your knitting in the plastic bag your yarn came in. Who's Jordana Paige? (I actually know the answer to that question, but it's only because I saw her on Knitty Gritty)
* You block your shawls with thumbtacks and bamboo skewers (um... do safety pins and an ironing board count?)
* You save those little charms that come with bottles of red wine to use as stitch markers. (No, but I have cut straws down and used those. I thought that made me dedicated.)
* You thought Addis were a new kind of athletic footwear.

If you can identify with one or more of these statements, then you are a Ghetto Knitter! Ghetto Knitters of the World, Unite! After all, it's easy to be a knitter when you've got Rowan Calmer to knit with. When all you've got is Red Heart and Lion Brand, but decide to knit anyway, well, that's true passion for the craft.

Keep an eye out for this logo, you'll be seeing it a lot soon... in the meantime, check out the site here.

Crochet Girl

I've decided to pick up an honest-to-goodness crochet pattern and give it a shot. I picked an "easy" one from an old issue of Family Circle Easy Knitting & Crochet, and found a cute capelet. Astonishingly, it's not making me pull my hair out while I jam the crochet hook into my eyes. I think it's - dare I say? - kind of cute. I'll take pictures soon.

It's so funny, I learned to crochet first - over 10 years ago, now - and never really advanced beyond scarves and blankets, all done in either single, double or triple crochet and that was that. So now I feel obligated to try and learn more.

Still hanging by the telephone, to paraphrase Blondie. I spent most of the late afternoon in bed. Have to shake it off. It's hard.

One thing that's helping, though, is actually doing marketing and publicity stuff for my buddy Dan's book, Closet Monsters: Zombied Out and Tales of Gothrotica. ISO has picked up the book (and they didn't even need a reader report from me, hee hee) and hopefully, he'll start getting some press. I also wrote the press release, if I may say so myself. Now, we've got to get the GLBT press to be aware of the book. I'm checking out different search engines to submit his site to.

And I've also started doing marketing and publicity for Patrick's upcoming show, Zombie Hunters: City of the Dead. This has been a blast; I've started submitting the sites to search engines, found a bunch of horror search engines, and am trying to get a table for the show to exhibit at the HorrorFind weekend in August. And I'm fooling around with a CafePress boutique, too. So more on all of that once it's ready to go.

Happy Easter, Everyone!

Five Year Meme

I found this on a blog ideas board, thought it would be fun. Give descriptions of your life in five year jumps working back from 2007, so every year that ends with a 2 and 7.

1972 - I was two, we had just moved to the apartment I ended up spending the next 23 years in, and my first memory is around this time. My mom carried me into the kitchen, where my dad was on a ladder, painting the kitchen cupboards. He turned around and made a goofy face at me. That's about it. :-)

1977 - I was 7, and Star Wars entered my life. Need I say more? I remember my dad signing me up for the Star Wars fan club - still have my introductory poster, the dogfight by the Death Star.

1982 - I was a preteen (12) and roller skating with my three best friends, Annie and Sandy (twin sisters who are still two of my closest friends) and Manisha (who I lost touch with after college). We logged hours and hours of playtime on our block that summer. I was also whiny because Mom and Dad wouldn't let me see Blade Runner with my beloved Harrison Ford.

1987 - Ah, the beginning of my senior year of high school. Duran Duran toured Notorious earlier that year, so I got to see them in concert finally (with Erasure as their opening act - how great a show is that?!), Def Leppard released Hysteria, we had our senior trip to Busch Gardens Virginia, I was going on weekly trips down to Greenwich Village with my galfriends, and having a great year. Love 1987.

1992 - I was 21 and graduating college, working two part-time jobs until I could find a full-time one, and dating the man who'd eventually become my husband. I was a full-fledged book and sci-fi nerd (and I say that with pride) and hanging out with a bunch of people who I still have the privilege to call my friends all these years later. I was playing the Dark Conspiracy RPG and having a pretty good time overall. I started off the year making my first trip overseas, to visit my friend Helene in Sweden. Not a bad way to start off a year.

1997 - I was engaged and living with Mike. We'd go out, have friends over, host Vampire: The Masquerade card games, and generally just have a good time. Mike built a shelving set that went around our living room for our copious books. It looked like a drop ceiling filled with books. We had two bookshelves mounted on the walls to hold all Mike's pewter miniatures, and I had Star Wars action figures displayed on the walls. It was a great place. Hell, I still miss the dishwasher.

2002- I had a three-year old asking nonstop questions and ended the year finding out I'd have a new addition shortly. We had our best friends coming over every Friday night to eat, laugh, watch TV and occasionally, coerce the men into a Boys vs. Girls Trivial Pursuit game.

2007- We've still got the best buds coming over, maybe not weekly but often enough to keep us all happy. I've somehow managed to acquire a 7 1/2 and a 3 1/2 year old. I knit. Obsessively. I am still a happy sci-fi nerd and am currently researching Cthulhu knitting patterns. I've had some ups and downs - haven't we all - but learning how to deal with them comes with the territory.

Last One for Today...

Although it's showing up aqua, this is a baby green hat for Will's teacher (well, her baby-to-be), Mrs. Pine. It's knit in Lion Brand Baby and it's got a little basket weave pattern. I'm hoping to bang out a matching set of booties and cardigan, and with the pinwheel blanket, I'll have a whole layette set to give her.

I'll say this much; knitting keeps me from losing my mind these days.

Pinwheel Blanket - Complete!

Here's one of the two pinwheel blankets I began a little while ago. This one is in the softest pink Bernat Satin yarn, with a fuzzy yellow yarn (I think it's Hunny? Can't remember right now)crocheted border to finish it off. I love the way it turned out! I'm sending this off to a friend who's due in a couple of weeks (along with the ever-present Umbilical Cord Hat and one of the Jester Hats I just finished) shortly.

I've got the second pinwheel blanket done too; I did it in yellow Lion Brand Baby yarn with a green Lion Brand Baby border (single crocheted and then double crocheted) and it looks adorable; that's going to Will's teacher for her baby-to-be. Photos forthcoming.

Triumph Over Adversity!

Your eyes do not deceive you... I HAVE SEAMED! TWO HATS! Those cute little jester hats from a few posts ago? I sat down yesterday and told myself I could not knit anything new until I finished these. I fought myself for an hour, but I sewed them both up. And they look kinda cute. So who knows? Maybe it's the dawn of a new day.

Now I just have to make the pom-poms to add...

Preemie Hats

Learning to knit with circular needles - actually knit in the round with them - opened up a huge door to me, especially since I think I've documented pretty well by now my issues with seaming up my work. But learning to knit with double pointed needles allowed me to start doing small, fine work that was too small to even do on circular needles.

I've been wanting to knit preemie hats for ages; I had once read about knitters making things for premature babies, who are just too small for the standard-issue hats the hospitals have, and to give a nice, handmade touch to the babies and their parents, who are already out of their minds with worry. And since anyone who knows me knows how I tear up at anything involving kids in distress, preemie hats seemed like the way to go (although by Fall/Winter 2007-08, I will have more of my act together to take part in the Warm Up America Foundation afghan squares project, and the Caps to the Capital initative for newborns). I customized the Stitch & Bitch pattern for my current favorite, the Umbilical Cord Hat, to a tinier size. It's heartbreakingly cute; it looks like a doll's hat (and it very well can be) but when you realize that it's going to go on a baby's head - let the sniffles flow.

So enjoy. I'll go whip out a few more...

One More...

One of Theresa's and mine. :-)

Garden in Transit

With school being out all week, the operative phrase is "whatever keeps you sane". So when the opportunity to take part in Garden in Transit came up, I jumped. And I am so glad I did, because I had a blast, and as you can see, so did Will.

Garden in Transit is a public art project - Portraits of Hope, an organization that tries to make kids' lives brighter through art, is doing it. Check out their website(s), they've done some great stuff. Anyway, this time out, it's New York Taxicabs. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the yellow taxi, Garden in Transit is letting folks paint decals that cabs will sport all throughout the city. It was so much fun. My friends and I painted four decals; Will and his buddy George got through five. They look Warhol-esque, n'est pas? We even got to sign the petals, so who knows? Maybe one day, I'll see one of our cabs drive by.

The springy flowers got me out of this several week-long funk I've fallen back into. It was nice. I even knitted another baby hat.

Speaking of knitting, I finished two of the pinwheel blankets - pictures to come. I love how they look, especially the one with the slightly thicker yarn (Bernat Satin - what a beautiful sheen). I finished each with a row of single crochet and then a row of double crochet on top with a contrasting yarn. I have found a new blanket obsession.

More pictures to come...

Spring, Spring, Where Are You?

You know, when it snows, I normally get as excited as my kids. But I'm looking out the window at this wet glop falling out of the sky and I'm just irritable. When the heck is Spring going to stop teasing us and finally stay?

Anyway, positive thoughts. My little niece, Keira, turned one the other day (jeez, that went fast. Any my nephew, Brayden, will be three in a few weeks - yikes), so we went over for a little party. Here she is (recognize the hat?):

What a little cutie, right? I can't wait to cover this little girl in Hello Kitty garb; I've already warned my SIL Julie that Keira will enjoy my Hello Kitty obsession to its fullest. Why don't they make Hello Kitty baby gear, anyway? I think I may have to apply to Sanrio for a license and produce my own.

Lost...

Thoughts on last night's episode? I like that I got an answer to something we'd suspected for a little while now, and a meaningful flashback that provided that answer. Poor Charlie... any bets on whether or not he's making it out of Season 3?

Any commentary on the bit we saw on next week's episode?

It's been a while since Lost hasn't left me pissed off, so let's chat about it.

ROCK STAR!

Rock star, baby! I know this looks like an oversized Rasta hat here, but it's the blanket - those bamboo needles were just what the knitter ordered; I cast on my five stitches and started to boogie. By evening's end, I was off the double pointed needles and onto the 29" circular. Whoo hoo! It's a lot of fun, but something tells me this is going to be a loooong haul - glad the teacher's baby shower isn't until May. I love the pinwheel detail; it's so cute.

Self Challenge Update: Still struggling with journaling food, but I am getting exercise. I am being mindful of what I eat, so I'm getting 'there' slowly but surely. Once I get out of this damned holding pattern with the job I'm hoping to hear from, I'm hoping to get out of this funk and get back into a routine, both of which will help me get fully back on the rails.

Pinwheel Blanket

I came across this pattern on my website tour and fell head over heels in love immediately. It's round. How cool is that? If I could make this one work, I will be a rock star. I've included pictures of what the completed blanket should look like; I've also included a shot of my success at finally getting the five stitches cast onto three double-pointed needles. I must have tried this cast on about 50 times, but so far, it's knitting up nicely. I'll keep you posted; I am so psyched to do this blanket. I think I'll trim it in a nice chenille - but I'd better not get ahead of myself.

Also, in my quest to find all things sparkly and shiny to stick on my blog margin, I've included a new link to Naughty Secretary Club - get your minds out of the gutter; it's a crafter's blog by Jennifer Perkins, who's on two of my DIY obsessions, Craft Lab and the ultra-fabulous Stylelicious.

BTW, I'm in danger of becoming a crafting couch potato if I don't get some gainful employment soon. Now I'm DVR-ing Stylelicious, Knitty Gritty, Craft Lab, Uncommon Threads and Creative Juice. Creative Juice is very dangerous because they have crafting and cooking tips. Deadly. If I stop blogging for a significant amount of time, do me a favor and have someone check in on me. You may find me catatonic in front of my TV, remote frozen in my hand. Merci.

Yup... More Hats...

I fell in love with this Jester Hat from the Yarn Girls' Guide to Kids' Knits and decided to knit a few up. The pattern works out great; I loved doing it so much I threw a second one in there (my knits are on the right, the Yarn Girls' version is on the left). How cute will this look? I even went and bought one of those pom-pom makers, so I can get the fuzzy pom-poms down pat.

Guess what's holding me back? C'mon, take a good look. Seams. Sigh. I think I need to use my powers of Internet searching to find a site that walks people like me through painless seaming.

The Dog Sweater

So my mom got a dog, Chester, through a rescue in her neighborhood. He's a Jack Russell Terrier mix and he's psychotic but lovable (I say psychotic because he has that crazy Jack Russell nervous energy - holy crap, I thought having two boys was tough). And he needed a sweater. Enter, Roe.

Go 'head. Ask me if the sweater's done. Now that we're looking at 50 degree days. C'mon. Ask.

What's left to do, you may ask? Um... seaming. I just suck.

The Dark Ages of My Hat Knitting...

I wasn't always in love with the idea of knitting in the round. It confounded me. It made me nervous. I decided I wasn't good enough to give it a shot, so I shied away from it. I could just sew the darn things up the back, right? (Yes, I know I've stated many times that I am a seaming delinquent, but I needed to be able to make excuses, okay?) So my hats looked like little Frankensteins, a jagged seam running up the back. I shudder looking at them now, the poor little things. (Yup, the blue, white and yellow ones below are examples of my earlier work.)

What changed my mind? Preemie caps. I'd been dying to do something for charity (we knitters are a charitable bunch - check some of them out at http://www.dailyknitter.com/charity.html), and thought it would be great to do preemie caps for little premature babies. The problem? Can't have seams. They hurt the babies' little heads. Well, that just made me get all teary-eyed (you know anything with kids does that to me) at the thought of my Frankenstein-esque creations hurting a preemie, so I knuckled down and busted out my copy of SnB. I went to Rag Shop, bought a pair of 16" circulars, and went to work.

This white hat is the first hat I made for a preemie, on circular needles. The only problem is, the yarn gauge is a little too big - it won't fit a preemie. I hadn't figured out how to do smaller work, switching to double-pointed needles once even the circulars are too long. I've figured that out, too - that's where the umbilical cord hats came in.

Believe me, knitting on double pointed needles (dpns) is not as scary as it looks. It definitely takes some fooling around with, and some dexterity, but it's so much fun - and it's totally worth all the crazy looks you get from people who try to figure out what the hell you're doing.

Knitting has kept me sane in the months where I felt like I was worthless. Learning new things in knitting has made me stop feeling so worthless and useless. It really is as good as yoga.

I Said I Loved Knitting Baby Hats...

Got this pattern from One Skein, which has been a godsend since I have an incredible amount of stash yarn laying around. I love the cute little detailing at the bottom.

Hat Love

I love knitting baby hats. They're just so darn cute and tiny. And since I finally unlocked the mystery of knitting on circular needles, it's like a whole new world has opened up to me. My favorite hat is the Umbilical Cord Hat from that bible of fun knitting, Stitch & Bitch. Behold, in various needle and yarn sizes:

I'm seriously thinking of knitting one I can wear. It's just so darned cute. My next project using the hat is to see how small I can make 'em - I'm getting into knitting preemie caps for charity, and I just think these would be adorable.

Ahhhh... almost done...

Biography Day is out of the way, and the Science Fair happens this week. I can finally get a break from Will's work schedule. I do not remember having this much crap to do as a second grader. I swear I'm the one getting graded.

So I can revisit some of the knitting I've been trying to accomplish. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to photograph the baby shower gift I made for Michele, a pastel variegated baby blanket that was a sampler - stockinette, basket stitch, and rib, with a garter stitch border. I've made it several times before; it's a Lion Brand pattern that I got from A Passion for Knitting, which has some really good patterns, especially if you're in a pinch.

Anyway - I'm going to shoot the hats and document my search for the next 'perfect' baby shower gifts. I've got two more showers to come, and I really want to stretch my comfort zone. So watch this space; I'll turn this into a real knitting blog yet.

The Joys of Having Boys...

...no one has to know I'm secretly excited about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie... I can pawn it off on them

...a reason to bust out my old Star Wars figures to play with

...no whining when I want to watch The Dark Ages on History Channel (well, except from 3-year old Alex, who takes it as a personal affront when Noggin is off the air)

...someone to have in-depth discussions about X-Men with, as well as fairly amusing debates about Justice League

It's good to be a geek mommy of boys.

Self Challenge - THIS is the year.

It's March, and that means it's time for my annual Self Magazine Self Challenge. I've yet to finish a full three-month challenge. Sadly and frighteningly enough, the closest I came was the year I was pregnant with Alex. I've gotta do it. I'll be so proud of myself and happier with myself if I do. I started out okay on Sunday and was fucked by Tuesday, but I'm going to shake it off and start again. I have to stop fighting myself on this.

Maybe once I get back into a F/T job and routine, it'll be easier. Still no phone call today. I'm hoping and maybe, just maybe, saying a little prayer.

Seven Deadly Sins...

Well, Pride and Wrath are my biggest failings... imagine that...

Greed:	Medium
Gluttony:	Medium
Wrath:	High
Sloth:	Low
Envy:	Medium
Lust:	Very Low
Pride:	High

Take the Seven Deadly Sins Quiz

Needle Love

I've spent the last few days combing the web for interesting baby blanket patterns. I'm in a cabling state of mind these days, so I'm looking for cables like crazy. But you know me - I do love my skulls, and since Will is hankering for a skull blanket, I innocently googled the term, "punk knits" - and lo and behold, a plethora of skull-y goodness ensued, as did some other great stuff. There are tons of great sites out there, but the blogs are the best. Knitters ain't just knitting grandma's stuff anymore - hell, you know it by now. Bring on the skulls and horns. I love reading about other knitters, especially the ones who have the talent to create stuff on their own (I'm not there yet, but hopefully one day I will be). So I just wanted to mention a couple of the many cool knitting blogs I've since added to my Bloglines (thanks, Nancy, for suggesting that - now I actually READ all the blogs I've bookmarked!)

You Knit What?? does for knitting patterns what GoFugYourself does for celebrity fashion. They're not blogging anymore, but the commentary they've left behind is hilarious.

Vintage Stitch-o-Rama has great patterns including Ankh Earwarmers and the "Camisole of Death". Love it. She's also got vintage patterns that go back as far as the late 1800s - awesome.

I'll post more later (right now, my ancient computer is giving me attitude about opening up another Internet Explorer window and letting me cruise the many bookmarks I've racked up the past few days). Pictures to come, too; I've got an unbelievable amount of little hats I've knitted up (god, what did I do before I learned to knit in the round?) and I'm agonizing over which blanket to knit for Will's teacher, as well as a friend of mine in MD. I've found a couple of interesting patterns, at least, right?

Young Mr. Roosevelt

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you, young Teddy Roosevelt, the Rough Rider:



Will had to do a Herculean biography project for school, culminating in his dressing up like the person of his choice and giving a presentation. After seeing A Night at the Museum, Will was all about Teddy Roosevelt - and hey, a New Yawker could do worse, right? He was adorable and awesome, and I'm gushing as usual. :-)

Batter Up!

Will's officially a Little Leaguer. He has his first team practice this coming Saturday. Can't wait! Now, to make sure to curb Mike when he starts playing games...

Until Domestic Goddesses is Back Up...

...I'll keep blathering on about my crafting here. I've been reacquainting myself with my sewing machine lately; this is a cool grosgrain ribbon I trimmed Will's pillow with. I originally bought it, along with some small D-rings, to make a belt for Will with, but I recently found some even cooler camo canvas belt material - which is probably a little more rugged for my 7-year old to have as a belt. Methinks grosgrain may come back from its maiden voyage frayed to crap. So I trimmed the pillow, and Will loves it (he's modeling, not sleeping, in the picture at right).

I have so many cute ideas from watching Uncommon Threads obsessively; I may need to make a pilgrimage to Rag Shop or JoAnn's very soon.

2007, so far...

So 2007 didn't start out on the greatest foot for me, but I've been trying to keep a good outlook. Things are starting to brighten up, so I'm going to be optimistic and look at what's happened so far this year; what I've accomplished and see where I can go.

- I've gotten to spend a lot of time with Will and Alex, which they (mostly) appreciate.
- I've gotten to bone up on my crafting - knitting, yes, but now I've reintroduced myself to my sewing machine and am getting more comfortable with it - something I've wanted to do for a while.
- I've gotten a lot of baking done, something I kept complaining I had no time to do.
- I've taught Alex three new songs and am about to teach Will cursive handwriting, since apparently they don't teach it in public school anymore (exactly what is there time in the curriculum for?)
- I've started eating healthier again, and this time, when I go off the wagon, I'm very aware of it.
- I've continued freelancing for Bspan, and had my first honest-to-goodness freelance marketing spot.
- I've begun a book marketing campaign for Dan's book - I even wrote the press release for it!

Not too bad for someone who's moaning about what a crap year it started out to be. What do I want to do next?

I really, really want to relaunch the Domestic Goddesses blog. After becoming addicted to DIY Network and the Uncommon Threads, Knitty Gritty, and Stylelicious shows (not to mention all the programming on Food Network), I'm dying to make that blog what it should be - craftastic! So I'm going to start working on it (and Stacey, Linda, Lauren and Nancy - help, please!) and will let you know when it relaunches in all its crafty, cookery glory.

(BTW - speaking of cookery - yet another Miracle Muffins victory last night, with cranberry muffins. Mmmmm...)

After that? I'd like to stay on the good eating wagon and finally unpack my pre-Alex clothes. I'd like to be back in those clothes for the summer. I may journal here from time to time, even if it's just listing the food I've eaten that particular day, to keep me honest. Bear with me.

I want to keep doing stuff on the freelancing end, but I needs me a 'real' job. So keep fingers crossed, light a candle, kill a rubber chicken, do some yoga and send good prana my way, anything that can help.

Speaking of that last goal, I have an interview in a little while. So I'm going to work out and get ready for it. TTFN.

Books

I've been reading like crazy lately, but it's pretty much the stuff I get paid to read. Sometimes it's great, as in the case of stuff like The Last Chinese Chef and the insanely funny Ant Farm and Other Desperate Situations, and sometimes... well, sometimes it's not. I love getting paid to write book reports, but sometimes, I just miss reading 'my' books. So... shhhh... I put one of the less enticing books aside for a couple of days to steal some Roe reading time and revisited Jim Butcher's first Dresden File, Storm Front.

I've really got to say, if you haven't read these yet, please pick them up. They're quick and compulsive reads. And if you are watching the Sci Fi Channel show, please understand that while the show is entertaining, you are missing so much by not reading the books. There are eight books now - check one out. It's worth it.

I checked out a webinar on Search Engine Marketing today. It was a brief overview, more about what career path you can take with it, but it was interesting. I think I'll check out a few more; they're on the SEMPO website (professional organization for search engine marketing). Anything I can to do pump up the resume and learn something new.

I've got so much running through my head. It's all driving me nuts. I wish I could just blink and it would all go away sometimes. It's frustrating, trying to deal with everything life throws at me when it feels like everything's coming all at once.

I'm wiped, time to go check out Battlestar Galactica (I'm catching up) before Lost starts at 10.