Knitting in the Park

Dear Mom,

Five hours gone in the flash of a fire fly.

That is what has happened last night, and one evening last week, when I met with my knitting friends in the park.

We gather with folding chairs, our dinners packed, plenty of knitting and Bailey's Irish creme for "dessert". Bursting with conversation, creative ideas, energetic spirits (and the liquid kind, too) we knit until it is too dark to see our stitches. We haven't been locked in the park yet, or run off by the park personnel, but the summer is young. Last night we talked of bringing a folding table to hold our drinks next time- a spider crawled into Carol's "dessert" - so it may be only a matter of time before we are pitching a tent, bringing lanterns and a portable fire pit. And breakfast.

It is our rain or shine, summer go-to destination. We have a band shell to knit under when it rains, as it did last week, and a bathroom nearby. In fresh air and shade, we listen to each other and the chirping birds, and the shouts of kids playing. We meet dogs and their owners, and watch birds, dragon flies and the cross country teams practice. We mind our knitting, and tend to each other's concerns.

And last night we had more sparks of creative ideas than the park has lightening bugs.

We leave the park reluctantly, but energized and happy.

I can't wait til next week.

Love,

Kim

As the Bird House Turns

Dear Mom,
There is a drama playing out in my backyard. Chickadee Mama was evicted from the nest by Mr. and Mrs. House Wren. This aggressive little wren is known for driving other birds from their nest boxes. Apparently the male chooses several prospective nesting cavities and places a small twig into each. The female then inspects each nesting cavity and chooses one.

She will then completely fill the nest cavity with uniformly small twigs and line a small depression at the back of the cavity with pine needles and grass. She often has trouble fitting long twigs through the nest cavity hole and will try several different directions and approaches until she is successful.

I wonder if the twig sticking out the front of the gourd was placed there by the male or the female. I see straw and chicken feathers from my coop inside this nest! Mrs. Wren lets out a loud scolding rattle when we get too close to her nest.

It was difficult to get a good picture of her with my little camera. She was quite restless...and not too happy with my being around. Unfortunately, she chose her nest next to a mulberry tree, and it's pickin' time!!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Father's Day

Dear Mom,

In addition to grill accessories and a new supply of inflating needles for the bike pump from both kids, the Young Lady made her Dad breakfast for Father's Day. She set his place at the table and arranged the food on his plate.

It has been a Happy Day.

Love,

Kim

Vintage

Dear Mom,

I may be the luckiest girl in the world! I have a fabulous new bike! It's almost like Christmas morning, except it's about 100 degrees and really humid; but I was awake really early this morning riding my new bike up and down our street in my pajamas and bed head!!

The bike is actually Grammie's original bike!! Pretty sure original tires. Fat bottom seat. Old lady handlebars. Fenders. My favorite color. Could life be any better?!

Yep, just like Christmas morning. Happy happy.

Love, Wendy

Consolation Prize

Dear Mom,

My vest design wasn't chosen in the Blue Sky Alpaca contest, but they did send me a terrific consolation prize.

A cute little project bag was sent to me, filled with one skein of each of their new Spud and Chloe sock and sweater weight yarns and 2 skeins of the "Outer" bulky weight yarn and a hat pattern. The pattern was cleverly packaged in an envelope like a sewing pattern. There should be enough of the Outer weight yarn to make 2 hats from the pattern they sent.

It was fun gettting a surprise package in the mail!

Love,

Kim

The Road Less Traveled

Dear Mom,

One of the challenges and blessings of having a student driver is the necessity of finding alternate routes. Avoiding speed limits of, let's say, greater than 30mph. So, as we wind our way to the high school taking the indirect, slow road, we see things we may not have passed by otherwise.

Last week, in a moment of almost relaxed bravery, and only after scanning the 1/2 mile ahead of us for potential danger, obstacles, children, animals and CARS, I managed to take my eyes off the road and was rewarded with this creative garden ornament.

The entire bike has been painted to match and planted with the petunias. Of course, I didn't dare take this photo while the Young Man was behind the wheel and it was only when I was driving back home after dropping him off, did the Young Lady snap the shot for me.

Love,

Kim

Summer Evenings

Dear Mom,

Now that summer is unofficially here and I am with children all day (I know, I only have 3 but they have morphed into many more and they bring their friends along, too), it is time for campfires, s'mores and tent sleeping. Activities all begging for Daddy while I am in the air conditioned house enjoying my "refreshments" too!

Enjoy your summer evenings!

Love, Wendy

Happiness = A Kindred Spirit

Dear Mom,

The best part of my weekend ( besides the coming home part) was spending time with my sister in law. She married into The Family ten years before I did, and I cannot begin to tell you the many ways she and I are alike (we surprise ourselves sometimes) or how thankful I am that she is just there.

She is the quilter to my knitter. I should have photographed her quilts while we were there. You would love them. Her fabric stash rivals my yarn stash. On Sunday, we were able to break away and visit a quilt shop and a yarn shop, both within a few blocks of each other, and both places an oasis after our time with The Family.

The yarn shop we visited was ....have you any wool?. I found some of my favorite sock yarn, Claudia's Handpainted.

This colorway reminds me of a box of chocolates.

And this one, I think, will look great with a pair of jeans.

A new ( to me) yarn was pointed out, and my Kindred Spirit picked out this color so I can make her a pair of socks as a thank you for her hospitality.

It is Panda Silk, a blend of Bamboo, merino wool and silk. It feels heavenly.

So I bought a couple of balls for me! I will use it to make this.

And if I could just knit faster, or sleep less, or teach the dog how to vacuum ...

Love,

Kim

Dear Mom,

We spent our weekend celebrating the 80th Birthday of my father-in-law. The party was held at the farm of one of his daughters and the setting was ideal. There was plenty of activity to keep the kids of all ages happy and busy, and 40 beautiful acres surrounding the reunions.

Each table was decorated with a theme based on favorite stories or interests from Granpa's past. Even the barn was dressed up.

I took plenty of pictures of people, and almost as many of the animals. Here are Mandy, a 15 year old lab,

one of about 2 dozen chickens,

one of a panicky group of lambs,

and one of my favorite pictures taken this weekend- the barn cat.

Love,

Kim

Summer Begins!

Dear Mom,

Today was our last day of school. I host an annual desperate-housewives-mourning-the-last-day-of-school brunch. We make it a priority to have our peaceful brunch with each other before the hectic summer begins. We have so much fun celebrating the school year and prepping each other for the upcoming summer. Friends have moved away and new friends have been welcomed. We eat yummy breakfast food and drink mimosas or coffee with "flavors".

We also throw water balloons at the kids when they get off the bus and give the kids ice pops. This year we filled 750 water balloons!!
It was another huge success and the kids had fun, too! Let the summer begin!

Love, Wendy

The Young Man's Summer, week 1

Dear Mom,

This is what the Young Man is doing this summer. Driver's Ed.

I have two crystal clear memories of when I was learning to drive: Daddy's laugh the first time I stepped on the break, bringing the car to an abrupt halt, sending us lurching forward; and you yelling "LEFT" so I wouldn't plow down a row of mailboxes in the neighborhood.

I am trying reallyreallyreally hard not to shout "LEFT" when the Young Man is driving. I may curse myself one day, but I did ask him to speed up and at least drive the speed limit. I was afraid he would be late to class if we continued crawling along at just-above-idle speed.

I am considering having a large "Student Driver" magnet made to stick on the car when he is behind the wheel. Kind of a New Millennium version of "Baby on Board".

Love,

Kim

Boys!

Dear Mom,
The bicycler had an accident. A large part of his right leg is skinned...and he purposely managed to conceal it from me for 24 hours because he thought I would "freak out" (his words). When he finally revealed his injuries to me, my knees felt shaky and weak, but I did NOT freak out! We promptly visited the neighborhood CVS where I easily spent over $40 in first aid supplies!! That freaks me out!
Love, Bonnie Jo

Jazz Legend

Dear Mom,

There is a jazz legend in the making in our home! The teenager made the Jr. High Jazz Band! Of course, being the supportive cheerleader Mom that I am, my first reaction upon hearing the awesome news was, "Seriously?!" (It is fierce competiton to earn a spot in the jazz band and I didn't want the teenager to dash my hopes for him in an attempt to pretend like he didn't care about not making the jazz band!) The teenager answered in a rather deservedly impatient way, "Yes, Mom!" He has worked very hard learning the trombone, we have listened to many interesting noises and Keeper still hides under the bed when she sees the trombone coming downstairs for an impromptu concert! All of his hard work is paying off, though and I am so proud!

Love, Wendy

The Young Lady's Summer, week 1

Dear Mom,

This is the Young Lady's latest craft project, a pencil/pen holder for her desk crafted out of a recycled glass jar with some scrunchies and pony tail holders stretched around it.

The Young Lady is also absorbed in a book of adventure and mystery titled The Mysterious Benedict Society. I want to read it when she is done! She found a bookmark that has a timer on it, so she can keep track of her time, both earning tv credit and knowing how long it will take her to finish the book.

Yesterday afternoon I took her shopping for a much needed summer wardrobe update. I am learning, but it is hard, to let her lead the way when shopping for her clothes. She definitely has her own sense of style and seems to instinctively know what looks best on her. She is attracted to the bright greens and blues that favor her coloring and I learned yesterday that she really likes plaid! We found a few cute cotton plaid shirts and some fun knit tops and shorts to match. We even found a dress she likes!

Here she is, modeling one of her new shirts, something she spied way up high that required help from a sales lady to retrieve, and which she knew was just right the minute she saw it.

She is also trying out a new hair style to go with the new wardrobe- we've caught some of those red curls into barrettes to hold them off her face.

A Young Lady, indeed.

Love,

Kim

Another Oriole

Dear Mom,

Bonnie Jo's Oriole reminded me of another Oriole story.

This story goes Way Back to when the Young Man was a Little Boy and played little league baseball. One season he was on the Oriole's team. We didn't realize until he got his uniform, saw the hat and asked us why that bird was on it, that he thought he was on the OREO's.

Which, when I think about it, would be lots more fun naming little league teams after cookies and candies rather than after the Major League baseball teams. Like the Oreos are leading the Snickers 3- 1 in the 7th inning.....

Love,

Kim

The Oriole

Dear Mom,
We have a new visitor to the hummingbird feeder. At first, I thought it was just luck that I happened to catch a glimpse of it passing through one day...then, I started noticing it regularly.

Baltimore Oriole

Wow! Do I ever feel lucky to have a Baltimore Oriole hanging around! Our yard if full of neat birds this summer, which is a good thing considering how many bugs and mosquitoes we have around for them to eat.

Love, Bonnie Jo

Friday Night

Dear Mom,
My Hero was given tickets to Monte Carlo night out at the Mt. Comfort airport. The Air Show is there this weekend, and Monte Carlo night is a fundraiser for Riley's Hospital.
I don't understand the appeal of gambling, not even when it is with pretend money, but we met some friends there, had some food and drinks and I even played blackjack. I still don't get the nuances of the game, but the dealer was a kindly, patient old man, and he just had fun with the rest of us.
The evening was very pleasant; the weather perfect- cool but not cold, low humidity, a gentle breeze. Hot air balloons firing up and rising gave us some pretty scenery.


So did the Men in Uniform. I have a new appreciation for the jumpsuit.




Oh Yeah.

Very nice views.

Love,

Kim

p.s. These photos were taken with my phone. Next time I am bringing my camera.

My New Favorite Hobby?!

Dear Mom,

I know I haven't posted in a while. This is a happy place for me and Kim and Bonnie Jo. It's our place to share the fun events of our lives. Kim showcases her beautiful knitting and her own (!) knitting designs; Bonnie Jo shares her incredible knowledge of chickens, birds, insects and outdoor farm living. Kim and Bonnie Jo are interesting! I have been struggling lately. Worrying about our finances. David had to take a mandatory paycut at work; my hours at the yarn store were drastically reduced, both as a result of spring shoppers who would rather be spending money on flowers rather than on yarn (what?!?!) and my being home this summer with the kids. I have a huge photo job coming up at the end of the month and David has a job he loves so all will be fine. I just worry and I didn't/don't want it to carry over to the blog. But, Bonnie Jo was a big cheerleader to me yesterday (thank you so much!) and encouraged me to post some of the latest stuff.


So, last week, because the kids are still in school and I had time, I sewed 2 skirts! I am a huge fan of skirts and love to wear them all summer. I think they are more versatile than shorts and waaaaaay cuter! This is an Amy Butler pattern (the Barcelona skirt) and I used her fabric, too. For the almost non-sewer, the instructions are easy and understandable. And the skirts were a very quick sew. Also, I have lost 25 pounds so I got the added bonus of making SMALLER skirts!!!! I had to resew this skirt to fit and was surprised at how much smaller I needed to make it!!! Yipee!!!!! I think I have found a new favorite hobby (sorry, Kim)!!!!

I will keep you posted on my skirts! There are some funny school stories, too, that I can't wait to share with you!!

Thanks again, Bonnie Jo, for being my biggest cheerleader!

Love, Wendy

Sno-Cone Party

Dear Mom,
It all started innocently enough, on the first Last Day of School, back when the Young Man was in First Grade. I met the school bus on that day, with a grocery store cake decorated like a big sun, and sno-cones. I had a table and beach umbrella set up in the front yard, the sno-cone machine plugged in and a variety of syrup flavors ready - let the summer celebrating begin! The neighbor kids joined in and the Moms all eased into the summer, sitting in lawn chairs, watching the kids play and chatting away the afternoon.
Over the years, the snacks have varied, but we always have sno-cones. I don't know what it is about shaving ice that appeals to the kids, but they love making their sno-cones and choosing the syrup.
The Moms have sno-cones now, too. The frozen cosmopolitan or strawberry margarita kind. And cheese and crackers, bruschetta, and fresh fruit. Laughter. A mellow shifting of gears. One Mom very wisely prepared her dinner BEFORE the party this year, so she would not need to be "challenged" at the end of the afternoon.
This year it was not the kids asking about the sno-cone party, but the neighbor Moms. They grab me a good three to four weeks ahead of that last day of school to tell me how much they are looking forward to the Sno-cone party and the drinks on my porch and I am still gonna do it, right?
I imagine us, years from now, empty nesters, meeting on that last day of school for our sno-cone party. At least, I hope so.
Love,
Kim

Homeland Security

Dear Mom,

The threat to Homeland Security is at Red Level. The kids will be home for summer vacation within the hour.

My summer plan is to severely restrict screen time. The Young Man and Lady will have to earn tv, computer, and electronic game privileges with exercise and reading. I am hoping boredom will have them seeking out ways to be creative, possibly developing a new hobby. Like vacuuming.


And because these things only happen when I am expecting company:


Seriously?????


Yeah. I really don't know what happened here. I was just putting the granola away. Total Cabinet Disintegration. So now I can add cabinet repair to my list of skills. NOT how I planned on spending my last hours of freedom before the after school party begins.
Love,
Kim