Wordless Wednesday

In The End

Dear Mom,
In the end, our love wasn't enough to save Patsy from herself.
To say we are shattered doesn't begin to touch the pain of the past 36 hours.

I love her.

Kim

Wordless Wednesday

Catch 22

Dear Mom,
The thing about blogging is when you are busy and have lots to blog about there is no time to actually do the blogging. Or you have the time and nothing to say. Kinda like getting a job to have yarn money and then no time to shop for yarn or knit.
Thankfully, I have had time to knit. And spin. And dye wool.

This is that time of year where planting the garden and keeping up with the outside has a negative impact on the messes inside the house. Once the inside is almost caught up the lawn needs to be mowed again and I need to get out there and water the flower boxes. (Current flower box count is 55, and Patsy still finds a gap where she can jump over the fence. We are closing in on her, though, and hopefully one or two more flower boxes will do it.)  And then I sit down to knit and it is time for bed. But, my veggies are planted. The beans and corn are emerging, the tomato plants appear to be very healthy and the rabbits have already found a way in and eaten one of my cabbages. I am afraid to go out there and check to see if anything else disappeared overnight.

In the last month I've had a life-changing diagnosis.Don't panic. It is good. I've spent most of the past 6 months feeling very tired despite getting plenty of sleep. I needed a nap (or two!) just to get through the day. At first I blamed it on a sinus infection, then decided I was still recovering from a sinus infection, then that I was probably just affected by the winter's lack of sunlight, and then decided I was just in the Habit of Napping and being Lazy. During my annual physical, my doctor asked the right questions, listened intuitively to my answers, and after ruling out any other causes for my fatigue, sent me off for a sleep study.

I'll just pause here to say that the result of a night's sleep in the sleep lab is NOT a Good Night's Sleep.

Anyway, the results of my sleep study revealed I have sleep apnea. Not something I ever considered, but easily remedied without drugs. The cure? A CPAP machine. CPAP is an acronym for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure. While I sleep, I wear a mask hooked to a machine that delivers enough constant air pressure to keep my airway open. The result is good, restorative sleep, through all phases of the sleep cycle.

Two weeks ago my CPAP machine was delivered. I feared that I would be sleeping like this.

But if this is what it takes to feel better, then I would make it work.

Fortunately, this is what my mask really looks like.

And let me just say right here, that the mask is PETITE!!!!! I have something that is size PETITE!!!! I was feeling pretty good about that mask already!!!!!

The PETITE mask fits comfortably over my PETITE nose, and the straps hold it snug to my head. As you pointed out, it is a good thing I didn't want anymore kids, because this thing is not sexy, but a tired woman taking naps all the time isn't sexy either. And at least a well-rested woman is happy.

First night with mask? Good.
Second night? Better than Good.
Third night? WOOHOOO! I feel great! I feel like Kim again! (pretend you hear James Brown singing "I feeeeel good!") REALLY good. Like CPAP is my new crusade and I want everyone to get Real Good Sleep.


Because I like to give names to just about everything, and especially since I will be sleeping with this every night, the mask and machine deserved to be called something better than "my cpap machine".

I've named it Johnny Depp.

Just so I can say I sleep with Johnny Depp every night with My Hero's blessing.

Love,
Kim

Celebrating the Life of a Chicken

Dear Mom,

On March 26 , Golda was buried under the maple tree in the backyard.  She would have been 4 years old in August.  Her death was not a surprise, as her health had been declining for many months.  It is my belief that she had ovarian tumors, but I'll never know for sure. 

As her outlook worsened, I made the decision to allow her to remain in the coop with her sisters rather than move her into a hospital cage.  To my surprise, Marge and Gloria allowed her to keep her positon at the top of the pecking order.

As Golda grew weary and reclusive, her sisters lovingly tended to her.  The day before Golda died, I watched as Marge cleaned off Golda's beak and straightened her feathers.   The following morning, Marge and Gloria remained in the coop with her lifeless body.

Golda was my Blog Star!  She was the first to lay an egg (on Christmas Eve!) and later produced the much-talked-about giant egg. 

She received regular spa treatments, complete with shampoo and blow dry.

She loved tomatoes.  She lurked in the shadows as we harvested, waiting for the chance to grab a cherry tomato!

She was quirky and silly.  She was bossy and strong-willed.

 

She had the biggest and floppiest comb!

She wore a purple sweater.

If anyone ever tells you that chickens are stupid, don’t believe it for a second!  Chickens are inquisitive and interesting little creatures with intelligence and personality.  I have witnessed a social structure, communication, and distinct personalities among my backyard chickens. 

Love,
Bonnie Jo

And Then There's Maude

Dear Mom,

Sometimes I see a knit design that I just have to make. And sometimes after the knitting is done I wonder what I was thinking.
Meet Maude.

I really like the idea of Maude.

Maude does not like me. Or more specifically, Maude and my rear view do not compliment each other.

IF my rear view were as tiny as Elle's there wouldn't be a problem. IF I didn't like cookies, my rear view might be as tiny as Elles. As Daddy would have said, "that's a Big If."

Knitting Maude was a piece of cake. I did make a modification to the design, however. I was not happy with the unfinished look around the back, front and arm openings and the stockinette stitch wanted to curl. Still in denial about our compatibility, I decided to add a purchased bit of lace. As if 3 yards of lace would distract from the upholstery.

I figured out a way to crochet a chain around the edges to attach the lace. It worked like a charm and added a nice touch.
I was feeling very Downton Abbey about it.

On a good self esteem day I will try Maude on again with a dress or at least Not Jeans and see if our exits are as charming as our entrances.
If not, Elle has a pretty new frock.

Love,
Kim

Bow Ties and Calla Lilies

Dear Mom,
Real life has interfered with blog life.
Last weekend it was the Young Man's prom.

Next up, Graduation.

Still knitting and spinning.

Love,
Kim