It Ain't Over Til the Fat Lady Sings.

Dear Mom,

It's a good thing I can't sing.

Without going into too much detail and making this long post too long, and since not all the I'm Gonna Tell Mom  blog readers are on my HIPPA form, I'll condense the adventures of the last month as much as I can.
At the end of March I had a CT scan to check on something (this is the part I will gloss over) which thankfully turned out to be nothing, but which luckily accidentally revealed a rather large aneurysm on my splenic artery.
After hearing the word aneurysm I pretty much got tunnel vision and expected to be told to go straight to the ER, Do Not Pass Go or Collect $200, but apparently I was wrong because I am sitting here, with my aneurysm still lurking in there. I have an appointment on Friday with a surgeon and I hope to leave that office with a surgery date. It has been a long month of waiting, waiting rooms, consultations and scans. I have been assured and reassured that the aneurysm "isn't gonna blow". I have also been told not to exert myself, strain or lift anything heavier than 20 lbs.

A friend (hi Lisa!) then asked "what if you sneeze?"
  !  
So far, so good.

~Suppress neither sneezes nor laughter.~

With the understanding that surgery Is Something That Is Going To Happen, I came home from that appointment on April 5th and started winding yarn and baking muffins. I was going to need comfort knitting and recovery knitting. And muffins.

Knit on, with confidence and hope, through all crises.
~ Elizabeth Zimmermann

Unlike the Gall Bladder Event of 1999, I have time to prepare for this surgery.
I also don't have a two year old, a puppy, and a Kindergarten Carpool schedule to manage, Praise Be To God!

And unlike Carpal Tunnel 2007, I can knit during my recuperation. If it weren't surgery, this could almost be a vacation!

 I started planning projects and organizing yarn, needles and patterns. Soothing, somewhat mindless, comfort knitting projects. Wool.

“Properly practiced, knitting soothes the troubled spirit, and it doesn't hurt the untroubled spirit either.”

~Elizabeth Zimmermann

As it turns out, I had more time for planning than I anticipated, and many hours spent in waiting rooms. I finished all those comfort knitting projects. I've had to start winding yarn and organizing the next batch of projects. 

I finished this shawl, which had been AbandonedForNoGoodReason.

This is Dream Shawl. I used Cottage Craft yarn, in Charcoal. I really like Cottage Craft yarn- the wool is wonderful and the prices are fantastic, but sadly I am finding the company unreliable.

I finished the Truly Tasha's Shawl, which is inspired by the shawl Tasha Tudor wears in so many of the photos we see of her. 

Olive on squirrel patrol

I used Bartlett yarns for this one.  I might go out on a limb and say that if I could only knit with one yarn the rest of my life, it just might be Bartlett yarn. Some may say it is scratchy. Not me. It gets softer with washing. And I like finding those occasional bits of straw in the wool which remind me that this really did come from sheep and hasn't been processed beyond recognition. The things I knit with Bartlett yarn will probably last forever.

Okay, and then I finished this felted purse.

I really really like this purse. The pattern is MrsKnit'sAllDay Felted Bag. This is the second time I've made this pattern. It is exactly the right size for me. I found the handles here.

Sooo, now, for the next round of waiting room and recovery projects, I have cast on two projects from this book.

On Saturday, I cast on for the New Zealand Sweater in a soft turquoise wool-cotton blend yarn. I am modifying this to be more of a A-line, tunic length sweater I can wear over leggings. I am all about comfort right now. Shawls, and hot tea. Loose fitting clothes. Muffins.

And I have the Long Collared Jacket (in Bartlett yarn) on my  needles as well.  Stay tuned for photos of that.

Yesterday, I wound the warp and dressed Donna Reed for a rag rug- simple weaving- in case I am allowed to treadle my loom after abdominal surgery.  I may have to exercise restraint and save that weaving for post-op. I feel the call of the loom and know that once I start weaving, I will be finished with that rug quickly and need to start another. I know I won't be up to dressing the loom after surgery. I need to think too much and move too much.

I wonder, will I be allowed to spin? That would be good. It would have to be a terribly long recovery if I were to run out of roving!


It's not what you have to meet, it's how you meet what you have.
~Helen Workman

I'll keep you posted. Say a prayer for the doctors and nurses!
Love,
Kim

Favorite Things Friday

Dear Mom,
I don't know where November went. It was lost in a flurry of airport runs, family visits, a very bad cold,  Thanksgiving here which involved a whole lotta much needed long overdue house attention, and a blissful long weekend away, in a cabin in the woods, with my 3 dearest of knitting friends.

I have lots to catch up on….

But first!
Favorite Thing on This Friday- Two Hour School Delay!

Oh, how we love 2 hour delays! For me, they are better than snow days. We get to sleep in, our mornings are more leisurely, and I still get a good part of the day to myself! Added bonus- the roads give me all the reason I need to stay home and snuggle in.
I'll pull some Roasted Tomato Soup out of the freezer (made from the summer's tomatoes) and we will have that with grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner tonight.

I took advantage of the snow scene this morning to take a Christmas card photo, featuring Olive. Despite my intentions, I never got a photo of the family or of the kids during the Thanksgiving Break and decided on a clever use of Olive.  What a dear, patient, dog she is- especially when Milk Bone Dog Biscuits are involved.
Earlier in the week- before inspiration struck- I took a series of photos like this one ( inspired by something I saw on Pinterest).

Total Sweetness.
Yes, Santa, I have been a good girl.

Olive and her left elbow are doing well. We can't let her get too wild, but she is a dog who likes to chase squirrels. She's had Rimadyl evenings, but not many. We've done as much as we can for her, surgically. She gets a daily dose of Glucosamine/Chondroitin and fish oil.  Rimadyl on the days she needs it. And there are further pharmaceutical options if we need them, but I am hoping not. She won't be a marathon runner ( but then neither will I!) but not a long walk dog, either. This makes me a little sad, but she is such a good dog and the best sort of snuggler that I willingly give up walking her just to have her with me. She is my car-riding companion, nap-time buddy, and curled-up-at-my-feet or next to me on the couch faithful friend. I've loved all my dogs, but Olive has been a gift.

In November, I did knit a bee sweater for Bonnie.

The rest of my knitting has been gift knitting and therefore, secret.

I've tried some delicious, healthy new recipes over the last weeks and I'll share those later.

The past few evenings I settled in with my knitting and started re-watching Downton Abbey from the very beginning. I will never tire of looking at the hats, beautiful dresses, aprons and the lace edging on Mrs Hughes collar. I'd forgotten how much happens in those episodes and how much I did NOT like Mary in that first season. I watch and want to wear Mary Poppins-ish shoes and long skirts with thick warm tights. And aprons. And hats.

So for today, on this snowy day, after catching up here, I'll be drinking hot tea, puttering and tending to the house and laundry, with hopes of spinning and weaving and knitting, too. Thankful to be warm and with nowhere to go.

Love,
Kim

Taking it from the Top

Dear Mom,
Sorry. I can't help myself.
One more video of Olive sliding down the stairs.

I am knitting, too. I promise.

Love,
Kim

p.s. Don't you just love the way her tail wags all the way down?

Basic Training

Dear Mom,

Olive Goes Down Stairs......
a video montage.

Olive has rejected the Roll Down method and adopted the Belly Slide as her preferred method of descent.
I love how she looks back at her legs like she is trying to figure out why they aren't cooperating.
Love,
Kim

Before we were interrupted....

Dear Mom,
Now that Bumper is cleaned out, my house is cleaned up, and things are back to what passes for Normal around here, we can catch up on the nice things that have happened! There may be too much for one blog post. THAT's how much stuff I have.
Two weekends ago, MelissaWhoSpinsbutDoesNotKnit and I took a road trip to Asheville, NC. We left some winter weather, which stayed with us well past Lexington, but the traveling was safe and with both of us in good company, the time passed quickly. Downtown Asheville was loaded with the expected inspiration and we soaked it in. I was so busy soaking it in that I neglected to take many photos.
My head wrap did some sight seeing too. At one point, while trying on some clothes - and let me pause here to ask why is it that I thought driving 8 hours and crossing several state lines would mean that I could wear and look good in something that was little more than a tailored feed sack? cute feed sack, but not on me, darn it!  - anyway, while juggling my coat, purse, feedsack and out-of-shape figure in the dressing room I noticed my head wrap had misplaced itself. Did I drop it somewhere or leave it in the truck? I wasn't terribly concerned about it, but did mention to Melissa that we might want to keep an eye out just in case. Melissa was pretty sure she saw it in the back seat, so we didn't think anymore about it and kept moving forward. More than 4 hours later, as we headed back to the truck ( only to move to another parking spot) Melissa Shouted "Kim!" and pointed to the sky.  ???

Good thing she was looking up, because I was looking down and would have missed it.

My head wrap in a tree

Thankfully the branch hung over a parking lot AND the parking space underneath was empty, so we  Melissa backed into the space, climbed into the back of her truck and rescued my head wrap.
I left it in the back seat for the remainder of the trip.
We did come home inspired by the things we saw in the many galleries and shops, at the Southern Highlands Craft Guild, and at the Winter Retreat held in a nearby mall and hosted by Friends and Fiberworks, a local yarn shop.

On the trip, my car knitting project was a gift for a soon-to-arrive nephew.

Yarn-100% cotton from Universal yarns- Cotton Supreme, if I remember correctly. The pattern, Sweet Pea,   is one I've made before and I like that the opening for the head is like a "onesie" and easily accommodates those big baby noggins. Quick knit, wrapped up and in the mail. There before the baby is, I hope!

Now, onto More Good Stuff.

Weaving.

My best effort yet. I am Very proud of my selvage edges on these. There are still mistakes, but less.  These have been gifted and well received!


On the heels of these pretty things came this:

Yes, that is Patsy's leg in the photo.  She Who Must Know and Approve of ALL that happens here.

"What. Is. That?", you ask.
Well. It is exactly what I wanted it to be, which is good. I just didn't mean for it to look like a Walmart Special. Which it does. I cut old t-shirts into 1-inch strips and wove them into a mini (11X28") rug for the dog dishes. I learned I won't be using t-shirts for weaving. Not that they were difficult- they weren't- and it certainly was a fast project- I just don't like the look. But, as I said, the rug fulfills its intended purpose and thankfully the dog dishes cover up most of it! I also got to try out the fringe twister toy I purchased in Asheville. More learning.

More Good Stuff? Why yes! But I think I'll save the rest for another post.....

Love,
Kim

Simmering Potpourri

Dear Mom,
Potpourri is one of those words that doesn't look right no matter how I try to spell it. One R? Po-por-eee. Two RR's?  Pot-Poor-rEEE. You cannot pronounce it the way it is spelled or spell it the way it is pronounced. Spell check came in handy on this one.

When I was at the Spin Workshop a couple of weekends ago, a fellow classmate asked if she might borrow my niddy noddy overnight and return it in class the next morning. Of course she could!
When Melissa returned the niddy noddy she gave me some of her home made simmering potpourri as a thank you. I thought, WOW! What a nice and totally unexpected completely unnecessary thing to do!..... I think I want to be her friend.
The potpourri is wonderful. I asked Melissa for the "recipe". She gave me several. The ingredients are all things you probably have in your kitchen and spice cabinet. I have her permission to share the recipes with you.

The combination Melissa gave to me was this:
orange peel (literally- the peel off of an orange.)
broken up cinnamon sticks
a few whole cloves

Put it all in a saucepan with enough water to cover and simmer away. Just be sure to check and refill the water- it evaporates quickly. Use it for as long as you like, until it looks yucky. And then make some more.

Melissa also suggests the following options-

Grapefruit peel with bay leaves

Lime peels with broken cardamom seeds

Lemongrass that has been smashed well and cut up for a citronella scent.

Cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg.

When I saw Melissa at Open Spin the weekend before the workshop, I knew she was somehow familiar to me, but I couldn't place her. When she started talking about her rugs (she is a Hooker!), the light bulb flickered on and I remembered. WAaaay back when I took the rug weaving class Melissa walked in with a few of her hooked rugs. They were impressive, inspiring, unforgettable. Works of art. I hope to see more of her rugs someday.

And this has nothing to do with simmering potpourri, but look at what I found at the Tractor Supply when I went to buy more Orvus wool wash:

Cute CUTE little baby chicks.

And even CUTER baby ducks.

Think of the neighbors, Kim.

And the dogs.

And the POOP.

Pictures will have to do. But ohhhh.

Love,
Kim

All kinds of stuff

Dear Mom,

There has been so much activity here that I haven't been able to sit down and compose myself long enough to put a blog post together. Since realizing that Patsy and doggie daycare are not a good combination, I have been focusing on staying ahead of her energy. Regular visits to the dog park and long walks seem to be working, proving that a tired dog is a good dog. I am getting my exercise, and Bumper's endurance has certainly improved. This time last year, a one mile walk was his limit. And sometimes finishing that left him with a slight limp the next day. Now we take 1 1/2 to 2 mile walks a couple of times a day. We also try to visit the dog park several times a week.

The best part of the dog park is the small pond. I don't mind a wet dog, and I've stocked up on blankets from the Goodwill to protect my car seats. One evening last week, during one of our visits, a duck flew in and landed on the pond. Bumper was on immediate high alert and headed straight into the pond, determined to get that duck. I wish I had my camera with me! Patsy, who is not afraid of the water but will only get in as deep as she is able to keep her paws in the muck, decided that running laps around the perimeter of the pond might help Bumper in his quest. 

Even with Bumper's   ahen    natural buoyancy, I was surprised at how well he swam. The Young Lady, who was with me, pointed out that BumperJosephMichaelPhelps was smiling. The duck managed to keep himself at a consistent distance away from Bumper, but in the center of the pond and away from Perimeter Patsy. Bumper turned back, reevaluated, and went for it, swimming all the way across the pond, "chasing" the duck. The duck probably decided it wasn't worth  all the maneuvers required to avoid the dog on perimeter patrol and the one in the water, and flew away. I wish I could hire that duck for regular visits.

The commotion of replacing the siding on the house is now behind us. We have a minor checklist of things to take care of and then we can officially say we are done.(And write that last check.) We spent part of our Memorial Day replacing our outdoor light fixtures. With fresh paint and siding, the old fixtures looked....old. I still need to put the inside back together. I took everything off the exterior walls before it fell off.

The only casualty of the exterior work was the postponement of the Annual Last Day of School Snow Cone Party. The painters were not finished and I wasn't willing to risk having me, the kids, the neighbors and our snowcones/frozen adult beverages covered in a mist of Sherwin Williams SW3004 "Summerhouse Beige".  But I think the painters would have enjoyed the party.

I got terribly little knitting done over the long weekend. Small price to pay for all that we did accomplish, though. All the dog walking is wearing ME out and when I sit down to knit at the end of the day, I find myself dozing off waaaay too soon. I am about 2/3 of the way done with a little baby jacket. It is Elizabeth Zimmermann's Tomten, one of my favorite baby things to knit, and one of my favorite baby/kid things I made for my kids. I'll show you when it is all done.

I can also proudly show off this project, which was finished on Sunday:

My Hero is reconstructing our Adirondack chairs using his broken hockey sticks. Both foot stools and one chair are complete - he just needs to collect more sticks to finish the second chair. They are Sturdy and Comfy (just like us) and hopefully we will be able to spend many hours relaxing time in them this summer with frosty summer beverages nearby ( and my knitting, too!)

Love,

Kim