Excellent things

Since my last post, the following lovely things have gone on in my life:

Date Night on date night

1st Communion

D of I State Meeting Performance

Garden tilling

An amazingly generous gift from Jenny

Visits from the girls and their boys

Outstanding meatloaf and amazing mashed potatoes

A new educational adventure for Sarah

Laughing really loud

May Crowning

Latin Club Roman Banquet

I post this now, because tomorrow, I may bitch a little, and I want to be able to look at this list and tell myself to shut up.

Peace.

Troubling

Besides all the usual detritus floating around in my head, today I'm having some major conflicts.

First, I'm having a little trouble with what I read and wrote about last week -- that "we are all doing the best we can" thing. I still believe it's basically true for 99.9% of us. But when just one person fails to even try to do her best, it bogs us all down.

Dear Miss .1%, Could you just please do the best you can ASAP? You're starting to tick me off.

Secondly, and speaking of ticking me off, what the hell is up with Kentucky Fried Chicken and Komen? And I say this as a card carrying member of both the Fried Chicken Lovers' Club and the Women Who Hate Breast Cancer Club. And, as a woman who has given a lot of time and $ to Komen.

Dear Susan B. Komen Foundation, Let me just send you an extra .50 and skip the bucket. I've known for years that a high-fat diet can increase breast cancer risk. In fact, I read that on your website. KFC will probably sell a lot more chicken wrapped in pink paper, (at 590 calories and 32 fat grams per serving) and you'll earn $8 million in the deal, but how in the hell do you people sleep at night?

Peace.

Mary and Joe and a couple of squares

Jesus looks less of a peanut here, thank goodness!

I also knit up an angel, but forgot to take a picture. I made her hair with the loopy stitch -- very fun -- and did a lacy little cast off for her sleeves and a little collar. (Just for my own future reference -- I had held a strand of mohair along with the white yarn, then when I cast off, I dropped the white and cast off just with the mohair -- Viola! Lacy cast off!) I was so happy that my pal, Sharon from Linton, won my donation. I am thinking of doing this again for our school auction next year, with some shepherds, wise men and maybe a couple of sheep!

And now that is is safely on its way to Kate, here are my squares for her afghan:
Peace.

Happy thought, just in time

I ask you. Have I gotten myself into more than I can handle? Right now, I have missed two meetings -- church music and after prom -- because I have been on the phone for the last hour trying to get answers and put out fires.
And I am not good at this. At all.
At least, I feel like I'm not good at it. Clay says I can handle it, and people look to me for answers and calm. Maybe I can give them answers and calm, but why do I then feel so messed up, discombobulated and a little icky?

Then, I read this on kind over matter (see the button to the left) a few minutes ago, and knew it was a sign from God, or fairies or the bloggy powers that be:

We are all trying to do our best

Sometimes we don't know how, and sometimes we make a mess of it. But most of the time, isn't that true?

Peace.

Spring in Purple!

Everything looked so pretty today, I had to take a few pictures on my way to being late to school.

Zoe and the lilacs

Phlox

Lilacs by the fence

I don't know what I like best -- the lilacs or these violets

Peace, purple-wise.

Some Knitting

So, after the whining earlier this week (sorry about that!), I decided to get busy on a project. I wanted to make a fantastic raffle item for my friend Carie's state meeting. After my good luck with Red Riding Hood and her pals (here), I thought it would be fun to try to design nativity figures based on the same pattern. So, here is my first figure -- Mary: I know. She's a little squat, her veil is a bit long and baby Jesus looks like a peanut. Hmmm.

I've already cast on for Joseph, but I'm not so sure this is what I am going to contribute; I might try to whip up something better this weekend and keep this squatty little nativity.

I've had this set done for a few weeks, and meant to deliver it to baby Lucas before Easter:
The sweater is the Mason Dixon baby kimono, modified -- I didn't knit the sleeves with the body. Basically, I knit a one-piece vest and picked up the sleeve stitches. I made the cuffs a little wider, too. The hat is the Umbilical Cord hat from Stitch and Bitch, and the booties are from a free pattern I picked up at Michael's. The yarn is Bernat Baby Jaquard, in blue this time.

I shared a beautiful baby blanket pattern with my pals at Knit Night this evening, but it will have to wait -- I have a lovely first communion dress to finish altering, a 2,000 word paper to edit and a musical program to pull together -- any ideas on how to entertain a room full of Daughters of Isabella?

Peace.

Vanquishing the Blahs

What's wrong with me? Spring has sprung, it's beautiful outside. We had a wonderful Easter. My family is well, my dog is feeling better.
But I'm just not excited. Not motivated to do too much of anything. Knit, blog, cook, read. So, here's something I found that I am going to focus on this week.


Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is bliss, taste it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.

~ Mother Teresa ~

Peace