So long, selfish

Dear Mom,

I woke up feeling very sorry for myself. My new not-even-90-days-old roof blew off in several spots because of high winds last night. The unplanned hassle.

And when I was making bread, my beloved Cuisinart snapped and broke. In several places. It is 20 years old and I do (did) use it weekly. Thoughts of having to actually knead the bread?! With my hands?!?!?!

And when I was on the verge of my feeling sorry for myself tears, I was reminded that I didn't lose my home in a wildfire or a raging tornado. Roofs and Cuisinarts can be replaced; if not now, someday. I have a husband that loves me despite that I spend too much time in bookstores, yarn stores and camera stores. I have three healthy, beautiful children. Full of energy, ideas, imagination, life and love. I have a dog that talks to me; never sassy words. Only words full of praise that I rescued her from a life of harsh hands, kicking feet and cruelty.I love my house. It's never clean all at once. There will always be laundry to do. And dishes. There are always tracks of someone's footprints somewhere in the house. Because we are a family. We have friends and loved ones that come visit us. They bring me laundry. And dishes. And footprints. And love. And happiness. And laughter. And so much love.

So when my I'm ashamed of myself tears passed, I thought, so long, you selfish, selfish woman. I am thankful for so many blessings.

Love, Wendy

February Lady Sweater

Dear Mom,
I spent the best part of my Wednesday knitting with friends. We had some delicious ham and bean soup and blueberry muffins. We admired each other's yarn and projects. We are a knitterly version of a Think Tank, solving world crises and local problems, offering advice and support to each other. We even provide yarn in knitting emergencies. Which is A Very Good Reason for maintaining a deep stash. And we think we all might need a flashing light like the one Starsky and Hutch had that attaches to the cars when making an emergency yarn pick up or delivery. And mostly we laugh.

I made progress on my February Lady Sweater.

I restarted the yoke last week. I didn't like the raglan shaping for this sweater, and felt that the gauge was too tight for this yarn. I decided on a more rounded yoke and did some math at the new, looser gauge and started over.

I am well into the lace on the body and it is moving along quickly now. I hope to start the sleeves this weekend and should have no problems having this sweater finished in February!

Love,

Kim

Love Potion #9 or Chocolate Covered Cherries

Dear Mom,

I am in love!! New Malabrigo sock yarn from Yarns & Fabrications in West Chester, OH. It is a deep chocolate and burgundy color. I want to call it Love Potion #9. But maybe Chocolate Covered Cherries, too. The colors are rich enough that I may actually find a nice manly pattern and knit socks for David. Or not.

Love, Wendy

Pets

Dear Mom,

I suppose some might say it is poetic justice that this dental hygienist's dog had a periodontal abscess and had to have a tooth extracted yesterday.

And while I was talking to the vet, I asked, "How long do rabbits live?"

"Oh, two to three years," he says.

"Well," I say, "the classroom pet we *adopted* is now 7 1/2!!!!"

"Any day now."

"Any day now," I tell the Young Lady. "Could be ANY. DAY. Dr. Veterinarian could only think of maybe ONE other rabbit who has lived as long as Smokey."

"I think Smokey is gonna break a record!" says Young Lady.

"Really?!?!" I say.

"Gee, maybe!" I say, trying to inject a cheerful note of optimism in my tone.

What I am thinking is that as much as I love that rabbit, I have been cleaning his cage for way too long.

And Bonnie Jo's pet chickens gave us part of our dinner last night. Young Lady named the eggs before we cracked them. Because " they could have been chicks."

Love,

Kim

A Rose By Any Other Name

Dear Mom,
I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck. Who said that?

David bought me a rose bush today! Love is in the air!

Love, Wendy

Catch and Release

Dear Mom,

I am thinking (hoping really) that the Ground hog may have been wrong. I see the buds swelling on the Climbing Tree in the backyard.

And on the Service berry trees.And then there is this:

My first chipmunk capture of 2009. Rather early. Maybe Chipmunks are the cul-de-sac groundhog......

Shortly after this picture was taken and before I could drive the chipmunk to the park to release him into the wild, the frantic chipmunk and curious dog teamed up to knock over the trap, freeing the chipmunk. The Young Lady (cooing over the cute little chippy) and I (taking pictures) screamed like the girls we are and danced around in an attempt to keep both feet off the ground at the same time just in case the chipmunk decided to run over our toes during his escape. The dog made a valiant but futile attempt to capture the critter. Chippy lives to be captured another day.

Love,

Kim

Signs of Spring

Dear Mom,

We have had 60 degree weather the last few days, with a few more days of warm ahead of us. Just last week I was snowed in with 3 children and a dog! I am loving the weather, even when the house experiences spring, too!

Keeper tracking through the house (and that's a "clean" spot)!

The teenager's big feet tracking through the house. (Urg.)

And Pipsqueak's artwork on the driveway! ALL of them are outside playing right now! All is well!

Love, Wendy

A Nesting Hen

Dear Mom,
It was so nice to have warmer temperatures over the weekend. I was able to get out and do some modifications to the roost inside the chicken coop. The girls have grown (or should I say "fattened up") so much that they need a little extra room on the perch to sleep comfortably at night. I opened up the front of the coop, and Gloria was hard at work in the nest box!



The hens have such comical "expressions"...they make me laugh!!

Our maple syrup production is well underway. The sap was a-flowin', and several containers of various shapes and sizes are catching the sap from our maple trees. Large pots of sap were boiling all weekend long. It takes about 12 gallons of sap to make just 1 quart of syrup. That's A LOT of boiling!!

Anyone in the mood for eggs and pancakes?!!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Pepperoni Bread

Dear Mom,

I tried a new recipe, which I got from Aunt Chris, which is a prize-winning recipe in Texas. It. Was. Awesome. I don't think we'll be able to go back to my pizza again. I think my before tonight pizza is going to be just average. Only okay, even! Audrey Kay gave me a fantastic deep dish pizza dough recipe and this Pepperoni Bread is better. Way better. Just sayin'.
David is already planning other things to do with this Pepperoni Bread; like ham and cheese. Or roast beef and green peppers.

It made a lot--4 loaves. We only ate 1 1/2 of the loaves. David will be eating Pepperoni Bread for lunches this week at work. Maybe.

Pepperoni Bread

1 cup water

1 cup milk

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. vegetable shortening

3 oz. sugar

1 Tbsp. salt

6 cups flour

1 Tbsp. yeast

1/4 cup lukewarm water --110 degrees

FILLING:

2 pounds pepperoni, sliced

1 pound mozzarella cheese, grated

1/2 pound asiago cheese, grated

4 tsp. Italian herbs (garlic, basil, oregano, rosemary)

Mix together the yeast and 1/4 cup of water. Set aside.

Mix together milk, water, butter, sugar and salt. Heat to lukewarm.

In large mixing bowl, measure flour. Add milk and yeast mixture. Knead for 8-10 minutes, until dough is no longer sticky.

Lightly grease large bowl. Put dough in and cover. Let rise 1-2 hours or until double in size.

On a floured surface, roll out dough and divide into 4 pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a rectangle.

Layer each rectangle with pepperoni, mozzarella and asiago cheese. Sprinkle with herbs. Roll up into a tight loaf.

Cover and let rise for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Slice and serve by itself or with pizza/marinara sauce.

Mmmmmmmm! Enjoy!

Love, Wendy

A Sunday Afternoon

Dear Mom,

We had a delicious meal with the Eggberts this afternoon. The tasty smells of pot roast and potatoes greeted us on arrival, along with our energetic 4-legged nephew. It was one of those dinners that you have to force yourself to stop eating even when you are full, because everything tastes so good. We saved room for dessert, though, and the Pineapple Upside Down cake was nice and moist- one of those things that taste better the next day, you know?



Pineapple Upside Down Cake



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt 1/3 c margarine in an 8-in baking pan.
Sprinkle 1/2 c brown sugar over melted margarine.
Arrange Pineapple slices and maraschio cherries on brown sugar.
Set aside.



Cream together 6 T. margarine and 1 1/4 c sugar. Mix thoroughly. Add 1 egg and beat until fluffy. Sift 2 c flour, 1 1/2 t baking powder and 1/2 t salt together. Add to egg mixture alternately with 1 c milk. Add 1 t vanilla.

Pour gently over pineapple.
Bake 35- 45 min. Cool 5 minutes.

Turn upside down on serving plate. Sugar mixture will soak in and run down over cake.
mmmmmmmm....a scrape the moist bits stuck to the pan kind of gooooooood.


Love,
Kim

Saturday

Dear Mom,
Today we soaked up much of the warm air and spring-like smells on a 3 mile walk. Bumper needed a wipe down at the end of his mile with lots of dirty snow splatter on his legs and belly. The spring-like temps are probably just a teaser, but I realize that it is time to put a beach towel by the back door to intercept Bumper's muddy paws.
I baked some blueberry muffins today added some craisins to the boxed muffin mix. This made me feel an inventive and clever cook, and if People have been doing this since craisins were invented, I don't want to know. I also baked a Pineapple Upside Down Cake from scratch for dessert at the Eggberts tomorrow.

At the grocery store this afternoon, while picking up sliced pineapple and trying to remember/figure out where for the love of pushing a cart in way too many aisles they might keep the maraschino cherries, I observed two little girls pushing the "Shopper in Training" carts. They were a ragtag pair, with snaggled hair, chapped lips, and rumpled play clothes. With pant legs tucked into half-zipped boots, they marched back and forth across the ice cream and frozen food aisle, reorganizing their carts for maximum capacity, swapping items as necessary and rearranging for the most visually pleasing cart. This was Serious Business. I left before witnessing a tug-of-war over a box of frozen waffles and only hope their mother was able to complete her shopping before any disagreements broke out.

By the way, the maraschino cherries are with the ice cream toppings.

Love,

Kim

Warmed Hearts

Dear Mom,

I spent a rare and wonderful afternoon with my dear friend, Audrey Kay. We drank fancy hot chocolate.

Audrey Kay crocheted like a woman on a mission (she is!) and I knitted (not so much on a mission).We giggled and talked. We talked and giggled. We pretty much solved all of life's problems. And then we went home to cook dinner.

Love, Wendy

Too below

Dear Mom,

The outside temp this morning is 2 below. Too below normal, I say.




Last night before dinner, The Young Lady blew bubbles to see if they would freeze.





And then we came in to have one of her all time favorite dinners. Look familiar??

Love,

Kim

The Betty

Dear Mom,
If Wendy has too many more snow days, we may have to check her into Betty Ford.
Love,
Kim

Surviving Snow Days

Dear Mom,

Today is ANOTHER snow day. The girls made their valentine's day cards.

The teenager made chocolate chip cookies.

I made coffee liqueur. And drank it.

Coffee Liqueur

2 cups water

1 1/4 cups white sugar

2 Tbsp. freshly ground coffee

1 Tbsp. vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups vodka (let's face it; I used the entire bottle!)

Mix everything except vodka in a saucepan and heat to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely. Strain out the coffee grounds. Add vodka. Pour finished liqueur into a bottle and store in a cool place.

Love, Wendy

Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket...

Dear Mom,

February deserves a knitting project all its own, and yesterday I cast on for this: http://www.flintknits.com/patterns/ladysweater.pdf The February Lady Sweater. It is based on the February Baby Sweater, a design by the Immortal Knitting Genius, Elizabeth Zimmermann. I tell you, when I discovered Elizabeth Zimmermann, it changed my knitting life.

I am using yarn I found on the trip to Asheville, NC that My Hero and I took to celebrate our 25th Anniversary. It is Christopher Sheep Farms 2-ply and I bought it at EarthGuild. http://www.earthguild.com/


As I cast on and started knitting, the daydreams began. Seems I knit little stories into things as I knit them. Not all of the stories are even close to being real. Like the one where I am at the beach and my kids are playing together, nicely, just at the edge of the surf; we are all wearing handknits, sand is not sticking to anything, and I am not worried about the ocean breeze blowing my skirt against my legs because they are skinny.... But anyway, this particular sweater's story started with possibilities for buttons and what I might wear with this pretty cornflower color and lace design. I imagined a crisp white shirt with a stand up collar, and ruffles at the edge of the collar and down the fronts beside the button bands.
Today, after yet another 9th grade scheduling meeting, I took myself off to find some new jeans. Not only did I find TWO! pairs of jeans on sale that fit, are a size smaller, appear to be flattering (could be the magic dressing room mirrors, now that I think about it) and were on sale, but there!, there!! on the clearance rack!!!, an additional 60% off, and in my size!!!!!...... the white blouse I imagined.
Come to think of it, I probably shouldn't buy that lottery ticket. I might have used up all my good luck for the day.
Love,
Kim

Groundhog Indeed!

Dear Mom,

The *!@##!@@!*# groundhog may have been right but I am scoffing at that furry little dirty rodent! It may be snowing outside and we may be under another winter weather advisory, but today I am sending sunshine, warmth and good cheer through the mail. I am working on writing thank you and I-love-you-so-much! notes this morning, using sunflower notecards and my fountain pen! I think you should be checking your mailbox; I'll bet you'll find something there soon!!

Love, Wendy

The Groundhog was Right

Dear Mom,

The groundhog was right.

This is what it looks like out my front door right now.
I am trying to hang on to that hopeful attitude of yesterday. And yesterday, I got a lot done. After a trip with The Young Lady to the orthodontist, I spent most of the afternoon with Rowena Rowenta and a book in my ears.....

Rowena has a bit of a problem with incontinence. (She leaks.) I am trying to be patient with her- it could be me someday. Plus, like me she gets hot pretty quickly. I just wish I could adjust the heat as readily as Rowena can.

Mrs. Yoder, the Amish drying rack we found in Shipshewana, did an awesome job drying my sweaters over the weekend. Here she is, extended to her full height. (I had to stand on the bed to reach the top rack) Mrs. Yoder is one sturdy Amish gal. She is holding onto 7 wool sweaters and 13 pairs of socks with room to spare. All handknits and all dry the next day! I am loving Mrs. Yoder.

And last night I finished kntting these-

Dimorphouse Mittens from mimknits. com

AND I had only this much yarn left!


I covered the buttons and sewed them on this morning.

I guess it is a good thing the groundhog was right- we get a bit more time to enjoy our handknits. Tomorrow I will show you what I am going to knit for February.

Love,
Kim

Chicken Eggs and Golf Balls

Dear Mom,
Did you know that I use golf balls to show the girls the proper place to lay their eggs? The golf ball serves as a fake egg. The hen sees the "egg" already in the nest and she says to herself, "Ah-ha, this must be a safe place for my own egg!" Hens, by nature, like to lay their eggs in dark out-of-the way places. Our nest box is located at the back of the coop, with an access door from the outside. It is recommended to have one nest for every four hens. All four of my hens have always gone into the nest box to lay their eggs; they are such good girls!
Love, Bonnie Jo

Groundhog Day

Dear Mom,

Today is my favorite day of winter. It is a hopeful day. Groundhog day means the end of winter is in sight! Think SPRING!

Love,

Kim

Morning Brew

Dear Mom,

Three children back to school blended with the promise of a clean and quiet house again make a delightful morning cup of coffee!

Love, Wendy

Superbowl XLIII

Dear Mom,

It's Superbowl XLIII so:
Go Colts!!

Dear Peyton Manning,

I hope you hit a home run during one of the periods of gameplay!! I hope none of your teammates has to go to the penalty box for travelling and I hope that the other team has several double faults and more!!
Love,
Your biggest fan!!!
Okay, okay, having a little superbowl fun. Superbowls are best for the commercials and for Buffalo Chicken Ranch Dip!

Buffalo Chicken Ranch Dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

large canned chicken mixed with 5 oz. hot wing sauce

Ranch dressing

1 cup shredded cheddar-jack cheese

Layer a greased pie plate as follows: softened cream cheese, hot sauce drizzled over cream cheese, chicken/hot wing sauce mixture, Ranch dressing drizzled over chicken mixture, shredded cheddar-jack cheese. Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 (or so) minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Serve with blue corn chips or tortilla chips. Enjoy!

Hope your team wins!! Our house is divided. I think the teenager is rooting for the Steelers just because the rest of us are rooting for the Cardinals!! No matter, enjoy the food!!

Love, Wendy

A Good Day

Dear Mom,

Good Day, Sunshine!!!

The diva stayed up all night slumber partying with a friend. We woke them up bright and early. They did have the common courtesy to smile nicely and look awake . . .

Just not very well rested.

We fixed blueberry pancakes for breakfast. Then I got to go to work and knit and talk knitting with adults all day. After 4 snowed in days with the children, it's a Good Day, Sunshine!!

Love, Wendy

My Hero

Dear Mom,
Outside temp, 20 degrees. Hot tub temp, 103 degrees.

Snow boots and a beach towel? No problem.

He's mine.

Love,

Kim