Busy, Busy, Busy Bee (Part II)

With the kiddies starting school again in two days and many household events the past couple of weekends, I feel a bit frazzled, overwhelmed and tuckered out. Not in a bad way, though. I like to stay busy. (Ask my hubby...he knows how hard it is for me to relax....)

If you don't mind, I want to chat a little before sharing my list (I love lists...) of finished/in progress knitted objects. If I could get off of my butt and make myself a cup of tea right now, I would....but, I'm so damn hot and sticky that I don't think I could really drink anything warm at the moment...even some tasty, slightly sweet Country Peach herbal tea. (My favorite next to Peppermint).

We had some guests over this weekend...my sister, Kim, visited on Sat- Sun and we had a great time. We don't get to see her very often and it's always a nice treat when she can drive up and sleep over. We got Chinese take out for lunch (I made a change from my usual Spicy Stir Fried Green Beans to Green Jade), went in the pool and then off to the Derry Flea Market. That was incredibly interesting...I've never seen so many "hot", brand named purses in my life. Whoa. Needless to say, my sister had a blast and found, what she thought, were some fantastic buys. The kids and Ian were more interested in going over to Clam Haven and having some creamy, tasty ice cream. I loved how Ian's chocolate dipped soft serve was melting all over his face, hands and lap onto the ground. Niiiice!

Yesterday, Ian invited some friends over from work for a BBQ, swim in the pool and night of furious Wii Sports playing. It was hilarious watching the guys compete over who could do the best dives/jumps off of the diving board. I wish I'd taken pictures!! (or videos) I think Ian truly beat them all - he's goood! It was a bit of a fight to get Ben to leave all of the activity, but I lured him upstairs with baby carrots and whole grain goldfish - and the new Sesame Street podcast to watch on my iPhone. It was really nice to get into our air conditioned bedroom after the day was over.

The best part of the whole weekend (I know this will sound crazy) was that our house is looking so nice and clean and organized. Ian did A LOT of yard work in the front and back and it looks pretty good - we need some more pretty colored plants (maybe some geraniums would look nice...) and mulch under some bushes but, all in all, it's much more attractive. We spent time cleaning up the "playroom" which is a completely white room (walls, curtains, and tile floor -what the heck were the previous owners thinking??!!!??) and, as you can imagine, gets dirty (and looks dirty) within literal seconds after having cleaned it. With a bunny, cat, and 2 kids in the mix, it's truly a nightmare and sometimes I can't even bear to clean it out one-more-time. It should be o-kay for at least one more day - I hope. Having everything clean and organized is essential to my well-being. Anyone else like that? I feel like I can't sit and relax for a second if I know there's any kind of mess somewhere in the house waiting for me to clean it up. Maybe I'm just weird.

I'm both not looking forward to the kiddies going back to school and also looking forward to it at the same time. I'll be happy (and relieved) to have some peace and quiet (no bickering or fighting!!!), but I'll miss them a lot. Especially Ben - who'll be going into 1st grade this year. And that means he'll be gone ALL DAY! (excuse me while I cry a little) Tim's starting his Junior year in high school and has some great classes - AP Java (which he's getting college credit for), as well as French 4 and other interesting classes. He's excited that this will be the first year that he'll have a study period and, though I hope he'll use it to get some homework done, I'm not counting on it. LOL!

I'm going to use my free time to try and teach more yoga classes and organize the house. I have these things in mind:

1. Clean out Ben's closet - get rid of old baby toys, clothes and donate old baby books.

2. Clean out art cabinet- it's currently filled to the top with Ben's artwork and art supplies thrown in everywhere. You can't even open it without everything falling out. That will change and I will organize and catagorize everthing to the DEATH!

3. Donate more old clothes and books from the rest of the house.

4. Fill boxes with things to donate or sell at yard sale - anyone interested in 3/4 full bottles of perfume? I have many. I always change my mind about what fragrance I like. You can have them for free. Just let me know.

5. Get my sewing area ready - I haven't decided yet where to set up my new sewing machine (and sewing basket, fabric, pattern books, etc.) yet. It's a choice between a corner in the kitchen or a corner in the living room. Both would work out (outlet-wise), though I think the kitchen would get more sunlight/light. But, the living room would be more out of the way of traffic. Any suggestions?

6. THE BIG CHORE - cleaning out MY walk in closet, which is currently full to brim (Ian, don't read this part) with yarn, fiber and books. This might take a few days. (gulp)

Well, I think that's it for now. I will follow up all of this talk with a picture of my one finished object and a knitted project-in-progress.

Buttercup



Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool in colorway #70
Needle: Size US 6 and 5
Size: Large (though it came out to the correct measurements for the size, it was much too big for me...and I'm holding it to the side with my hand. I'm thinking of trying to wash and dry it so it'll shrink a little)
Details: You can see more pics and read more about my experience with this pattern HERE on Ravelry.

Lizard Ridge Afghan



Yarn: Noro Kureyon
Needle: Size US 8
Size: I'm making 5 vertical strips, each 10.5" by 74" and each using 6 full skeins of Noro Kureyon. So far, I've made 3 full strips plus almost done with 1/3 of another.
Details: You can see more pics and read more about my experience with this pattern HERE on Ravelry.

WEIGHT LOSS UPDATE:

I'm up to over 85 pounds lost and I have only 19 pounds to go. Or a little less. I feel like I'm getting closer and I'm trying VERY VERY HARD so that I can reach my goal by the end of the year. Thanks to everyone for always encouraging me and cheering me on. You're wonderful! I keep trying to re-motivate myself, which is not always easy to be sure....and I truly could NOT do it without my husband. He's been my number 1 supporter and daily compliments me, helps me and keeps me on track. I think Weight Watchers needs to give HIM and award! : )

Have a great night and hope that you're all doing well...big hugs from me!

P.S. The top picture is of the newly acquired yarn that I bought (and was gifted) from Heather of Sereknity. The top pic is of a new skein of Malabrigo Worsted that I'll use for a new Amanda Hat for myself for the winter and the others (in the "Perfect" yarn base) are: Alyssa, Indigo-go and Posy - all new and simply gorgeous colorways that Heather has created. I can't wait to knit them up!!!