Saturday, June 26, 2010

A Pretty Purple Baby Shrug

My latest knitting project was a simple purple baby shrug for my friend, Rachel's, baby shower today. Isn't it sweet? It was a simple, fun knit. I used one of my favorite yarns, Dream In Color, Classy Worsted Weight 100% superfine Australian Merino Superwash in the colorway Wisterious. http://www.dreamincoloryarn.com/

I found the pattern on Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/baby-shrug which directed me to http://www.allaboutyou.com/craft/Knitting-pattern-baby-shrug/v1. Check it out.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Look What I Bought!

See! I'm so excited to finally purchase, Made in Brooklyn, by Jared Flood. His blog address is: http://brooklyntweed.net/blog/ I bought it at a wonderful little knit shop called River Knits, http://www.riverknitsyarns.com/, in Lafayette, IN, on my way home. I know...Lafayette isn't on my way home. Well, it is if you know they are holding the book for you and you've been wanting it for over a year. Then it's most definitely on your way home!

The Crazy Things You See At Your Parents

I spent Monday through Wednesday with my parents. It was anything but boring. 4 inches overnight with amazing thunder and lightening is not exactly normal. 

Actually this is kind of normal when a big rain comes along, except for the poor teenage girl who thought she was just parking her car in the backyard out of the way. And they had to sandbag around the high school across the street. That's not normal. But water covering my dad's backyard is. Unfortunately, his garden is probably ruined. Although, he did gain a nice piece of fencing down by the grape arbor.
The real reason I was there was to start work on their bathroom. So...I took off wallpaper, ripped up carpet (notice the lovely orange carpet of my childhood that was underneath. We left it down for sentimental value until it has to be removed.), and pulled up some of the tile to use in other places. Now to buy paint and flooring.
But the best part of the trip was sitting with my mom listening to a book on CD and knitting a baby shrug for a friend. Oh...and watching Fox News. Have you heard about the President and the General? It's quite a story.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Twelve Years with my Miracle Child

My youngest baby girl was born on this day twelve years ago. She’s my miracle, wanting to come at 26 weeks, allowing me to laze around on bedrest while my mom, sister and husband did all my work, and then deciding not to come at full-term unless the doctor induced. She’s not stubborn, just relaxed. She comes when she’s ready to come, maybe a little early, maybe a little late.

So my first fearful moments with this precious child were filled with the thought that she may be born too early to live. What a frightening notion…until unexplainable peace that only God can give enveloped me. I knew, in that colorless hospital room, that all would be well. She would live or she would go straight to a loving, Heavenly Father never having to experience the pain this world can give. I can’t tell you how comforting that was to me. While I might not have received the joy of seeing her grow, I would have the joy of knowing she never experienced any of the pain the living see. That was a gift from God. But she did survive to give us another scare.

I knew something was wrong when the doctor’s face blanched as he delivered her. The nurses quickly whisked her away. “Did you see that?" Doc asked my husband. But God gave me another miracle. When the nurses brought her back she was perfectly healthy despite having what the doctor described as a “true knot” in her umbilical cord. The fear was that if the knot was too tight she would have been deprived of food and oxygen in the womb. We were told that’s why many women miscarriage early in their pregnancy. You see, when a baby is very tiny, it can move around too much, knotting itself up. As it grows and moves more, it pulls that knot tight and soon dies. So…how did my little gymnast do somersaults in my uterus for nine months without tightening that knot? I know. God.

And throughout the years God has always been watching over her, protecting, guiding, loving her, and keeping me from having heart attacks. We called her “Dennis the Menace” so many times because she would get herself in the worst predicaments without trying to be bad. Before she could walk, she could climb up the dining room chairs, onto the tabletop and stand up. I began storing the chairs on top of the table to protect her from herself. If a life guard blew a whistle, I asked, "where's she at?" I had to keep such a tight grip on her wrist in public that I'm surprised she didn't have bruises. Picture a dog straining on it's leash. That was what it was like holding onto her. Her life was full of excitement and exploration with no thought of danger at all.

But today she is my caring, compassionate, serving child. Regularly she volunteers to be her older sisters’ “servant,” making them meals, bringing them drinks, running their errands. At the end of the school year, she was honored with the highest award her elementary school gives, an award based on character. And when asked what she wants to be when she grows up, she says, "a mom." She’ll make a wonderful one too, full of love for every miracle child the Lord brings her.

I love you, baby girl.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Uggh! I Did It Again

Oh my gosh! It’s been three weeks since I blogged. How does that happen, that what I think is a one week lapse is really three weeks? This is my nemesis: time. I totally lose track of it. It happens when my schedule changes – spring break, Christmas break, summer break, a new sports season, etc.

I love change, but become totally discombobulated when it occurs. Then boom, three weeks later…I remember to blog.

Sorry friends. I try. Honest, I do.

Do you have this problem? How do you manage to write or blog despite the disruptions of you schedule? I'd love some advice.
Today was a very special day! It takes something special to get me up at 6:30am on a weekend, especially in the middle of my summer break. But I was up and ready, sleepy, but ready for the two and a half hour drive to visit Patti Lacy’s writer’s group. If you don’t recognize her name; she’s a Christian author. (She’s what all of us writer’s want to be - published.) I felt very honored to attend and met some amazing women, amazing writers. Boy, did I learn A LOT. Most importantly, that my most important audience is God. And if no one ever reads this blog or anything else I write, the fact that I followed what I felt I was supposed to do is enough. I write because God gifted me and gave me a passion. He is my audience. We all should do what we know we are meant to do, just because we are meant to do it, not for fame or notoriety. 


When I knew I was going to get to go, I checked out her first novel from the library, "An Irishwoman's Tale." It's a thrill to be able to say I read a book written by a person I actually know. Today I hit the bookstore and picked up her second one, "What the Bayou Saw." s Check out her book and visit her website for yourself, www.PattiLacy.com.