31 R O C K S ! ! !

I don't think I have ever celebrated a birthday as much as I have this one. It started Wednesday night. Some of my family came to watch Peanut's swim class. After class I got presents and a trip to DQ. I had forgotten just how good a blue raspberry freeze was. Thursday was the actual day. I got taken to Claddaugh for lunch. During my department celebration, flowers from Peanut were delivered. They are beautiful! I've never seen carnations arranged so well and I never knew they could be as fragrant as these are. You could smell them from the hall before you even got to my cube. They are now gracing our dining room table at home. The Fabulous Neighbor Family had cake and presents for me at their place that night. I had 9 little kids circled around me singing Happy Birthday. It was a great moment. I got a little teary eyed. Friday night, a group of us went to The Melting Pot. Heaven, pure heaven. It took us 4 hours to get through dinner. It was awesome. So relaxing. I felt like an adult and not just Peanut's Mom. They had Sinatra playing. The lights were dim. The drinks were awesome and the food was amazing. Highly recommend it. Saturday, I got more presents and taken out to dinner to TGIFridays. More drinks. Great food. If you go, get the donuts. They're so worth it!! Saturday night wound down with a party at my house. Good friends. More good food. Lots more drinks. Not too many, but LOTS more drinks. Sunday was a repeat of Saturday, but with fewer drinks and ending quite a bit earlier.

And the presents!! Holy cow!!!

By far the biggest present I got was from FNJ. She used my house key without my knowing to let herself in. She spent several hours doing the Spring Cleaning that was put on hold because Mister was ill and unable to visit Peanut. The woman loves to clean. It makes her happy to clean. Initially, I was a little mad because I don't want anyone cleaning up after me....but then she told me how she wanted to do something nice for me and this was something she was good at and she knew I was stressing about getting it done. I have never had anyone do something so nice for me. Never. The house is beautiful. I can't thank her enough. And yes, I got teary eyed over it. I am so blessed to have such wonderful neighbors.

On Wednesday night, my family gave me a gift. It's something I never expected or thought I would need, but I am thankful for it. I am now the proud owner of a tent. A camping tent. A 10x13x72", sleeps 5 people camping tent. Let me just say that I've been camping exactly twice in my life. The first time was 5th Grade Camp and we stayed in cabins with running water and electricity. The second time was in high school when I went to Girl Scout Camp as a PA. We stayed in platform tents with cots that were very near the bathroom/shower facility. So, camping is generally not high on my list. Now FNJ, they camp. They love to camp. They've invited Peanut and I to camp with them this summer. I called up Aunt and asked to borrow their tent as I know they are well equipped for this sort of thing. She agreed and I figured I'd be done with it. Nope, now I have my own tent to camp whenever I want. 31 is my year to have fun and try new things, so we're starting with camping I guess.

On Thursday, I got to open my gifts from Peanut. She, Grandma and Aunt Peanut went to the new Dollar Store to shop. Aunt Peanut tells me she insisted I needed the yellow flyswatter with the giant flower on it. Kid's right. We didn't have one. Now I have one that's pretty as well as functional. I also received a cool magnet photo frame, a new magnetic shopping list and four coordinating magnets. A personal fan with the American Flag on it that lights up when it's run. Some cool hair clips and a bath scrubby on a long handle. There were many more goodies in the bag, but I can't remember off the top of my head. Thursday night, I opened the gifts from the neighbor kids. I've developed quite a little fan club. They each painted a container and a figurine for me. They are darling. They will soon be gracing our mantle. I'll post a photo soon.

And the yarn....I got some beautiful yarn from Knitpicks. I got two skeins of Memories in Rocky Mountain Dusk. Two skeins of Dancing in Hula and two skeins of in Campfire. I also got some new circs for Magic Loop and the new Harlot book. I'm about halfway through it and I'm really mixed on it. I'll save my comments for when I've finished it.

I really needed this weekend. Peanut was visiting Mister, so I didn't have to worry about anyone but myself. Friday night, I finally felt like Janette again. Janette's been missing for a very, very long time. Sunday morning, I was reflecting on the last few days and felt so much lighter. The world seems brighter. The divorce will be final in June and life moves on...and it's a such better happier life! 30 was all about transition and growing. Quite honestly, it sucked and I was glad to see it end. 31 is the first year of the second third of my life. I am so blessed to have people that love me and appreciate me in my life. The last year has has some really dark times, but now the sun is shining and "Tomorrow may rain, so I'll follow the sun".

PS A drunken trip to the grocery store Saturday night netted me a bag of Hershey kisses in the new confetti flavor. Love them! They are white chocolate with candy bits mixed in. I have a thing for Hershey kisses and all the different flavors, so these were an extra special birthday treat.

Settling Dust

Wow! What a crazy few weeks it's been. I don't think it'll truly end until this weekend, either. Lots of BIG plans for this weekend!!

Peanut has continued with her swim classes. I swear she's part mermaid. At her second class, she didn't bother to wait for the teacher to come back to give her another turn at trying to swim. She hopped right off the side of the pool and into the water. They pulled her out and she acted like it was no big deal and she did it every day.

We participated in WalkAmerica on Sunday with our family team. This year we raised $1,170! That brings our 3 year total to over $5,000. I am in total awe of that. That's just a few of my friends and family. The March of Dimes is near and dear to my heart. I know for a fact that if it weren't for them, I would not have the pleasure of being a mom to Peanut. Walking 3 miles and bugging people for money once a year is the very least I can do. (Also my 007 April Photo)

Not a whole lot has been going on with the knitting. I get in a few rows here and there. Mickey is still coming along. I'm about 1/3 of the way through it. It really doesn't look any different, so I'll spare you the photo. Erin and I start the Clapotis KAL on Thursday. It's my birthday and it's all about second chances. 30 was my year of transition. 31 is my year to start enjoying life again.

Speaking of enjoying things again...I've started branching out from SpongeBob in the evenings. Of course, I returned to The Sopranos when it came back. It should be an interesting ending. I've also become addicted to The Tudors. That totally feeds right into my love for history and trashy romance novels. Well, I'm a reformed trashy romance novel reader. I have a total crush on George from The Hour. Smart, cute and hip. Yeah..I think I'd make a run for the border for him. Big Love is returning in June. I can't wait to see where they take that show. The Easter Bunny brought me Season 1. I'm planning to rewatch it before it comes back. Dexter won't be back until October.

That's it from here. Thanks for checking in. My good news from before was compounded with even better news (about something totally different). I'm still not ready to share, but I will as soon as I can.

To apologize for the tease, here's a Peanut photo. That's wool in her hand from a freshly shorn sheep. When you ask her what they do with the sheep's hair she'll reply, "Um, make it into yarn!"

Super Fast Drive Thru Post

Peanut had her first swim class

The Easter Bunny paid us a visit. He has great taste in yarn, dvds and chocolates.

The weather finally cooperated enough for Peanut to try out her new two-wheel bike.

And, I just got the best news yet this year! Can't share just yet...but it's no coincidence that it's timed along with the tax deadline.

Hello Virus...Goodbye Harlot

My body family gave up and gave into the cold I've been fighting for the last week on Thursday night. A good friend of mine described her throat as feeling as if she were "swallowing glass". I'd have to say that's a pretty good way to say how I'm feeling. I broke down and bought some "behind the counter" sudafed on Friday. I'm now on the State of Michigan's books as having purchased 48 tablets. The stuff you can still buy on the shelf can't do anything compared to the real stuff. So, I feel like crud and will be skipping the Harlot visit tomorrow. Bummer.

I got my L&V Secret Pal swap box this week. My spoiler was none other than Manda from the Knitting Psychos podcast. She sent me a fabulous skein of hand dyed yarn. A super cool new chibi, bamboo cable needles, some needle clippy things, wool wash, a note book & pen, and some great candy. I have yet to photograph it but will soon. Thanks so much Manda!!

In super fabulous news...Baby Logan will be coming home soon after Easter. How awesome is that?! He's truly a miracle baby. Thank you for all of your good thoughts and prayers for him.

The meds are finally kicking in and I'm heading to bed.

Updates...

It's been a while since I've posted. Sorry about that. Life gets in the way. The last week has been a bit topsy turvy. I can't say much. But I think I've been more angry in the last week than I have ever been in my life. Way more angry than I ever thought I could be. I kept it together and I smiled because I'm trying to rise above and "Be Better". I am still in awe that some people show such a lack of respect for things that are personal and private to their lives. Moving on before I say something I'll regret later....My dear neighbors also experienced an incredibly sad tragedy that really puts life in perspective. I've been doing all I can to help them out, but it never seems like enough to help ease them through it.

Baby Logan is progressing incredibly well. He's almost up to 5 lbs and he's been practicing maintaining his temp in an open air bassinette. I've seen photos of him sporting the cap I made, but I haven't asked for permission to post them. His parents are hoping he'll be home before his due date at the end of April. It's amazing how well he's done.

I've been steadily working on Mickey. Her hot pinkedness is coming along...slowly, but surely. I finally looked at the ball band and it's the Watermelon color of Caron Simply Soft....and it is bright pink. Peanut comes to check it out each time I work on it and repeatedly asks if it's for her. Two things have happened while working on this project. 1) I have confirmed that I am an insanely slow knitter. The pattern is a six row repeat. There are a couple of wrap & turns, but that's 8 rows max. While watching Tristan & Isolde on Sunday, I timed how long it took me to get through a repeat....six rows over 69 stitches = 35 mins of my knitting life. That's really pathetic. No wonder it takes me forever to complete things! 2) I can now do plain stockinette/garter stitch without looking! I had become enthralled with the movie at one point (Irish/English tribes, Dark Ages, forbidden love...who wouldn't get caught up?) and suddenly realized that I had been watching the screen and still knitting! I consider this to be a major turning point in my knitting career.

I got notice today that my Lime & Violet Secret Pal box arrived at the local post office. I am so excited! It almost feels like my birthday. Speaking of my birthday...you may remember that last Summer, the blogless Erin and I decided to do our own Clapotis KAL. I had a project ending moment 2/3 of the way through when I realized I wouldn't have enough yarn. Considering it was Lisa Souza yarn, getting more would not be an option. I put Clappy in time-out while Erin sailed on to finish hers. A month or so ago, I pulled Clappy out and frogged her. She's been resting comfortably in pretty little Shade Garden cakes waiting to be brought out again. After some discussion, Erin wanted to make another one for a gift and I need to give mine another try. So...we launch Clappy2.0 on my birthday. 30 is my year of change and one I'd like to forget, but 31 is the first year of the 2nd 3rd of my life! It's all about new beginnings and a better life, so it's only fitting Clappy get another chance.

It's a busy week for us full of birthday parties, a Harlot visit and a school function. Thanks for checking in on us!

Springing Forward

I spent an hour and a half tonight updating and bouncing mail servers. What an exciting way to spend a Saturday night. Friday night was spent out celebrating, so I can't complain too much. I'm glad to say the server updates seem to have gone well so far. I can't believe how much work a single decision generated for the IT world. Y2K had nothing on this one. I can only imagine the backlash if the government decides this wasn't such a good idea next year and revoke the change. Oy...I don't even want to think about it.

Yeah, so I've been working on another pair of socks for Peanut. First there was the "I can't handle US0 needles and this will be a great bracelet" pair. I then had a go of it with a heavier yarn. US2 needles seemed huge after the US0s. So this is what it looked like just before it visited the frog pond.

It was a little too small. It fit fine now, but it did require a bit of a tug to get past her heel. That's great. I finally realized by the time I got them finished, they would be too small. I really liked the yarn and will pick it up again, but I think I need a break from the tiny needles.

On that note...Knitty.com Spring 2007 just came out. Totally perfect timing!! I love Mickey. So much so that I did a gauge swatch the night it came out. I have quite the stash of Caron Simply Soft. I found the brightest, most annoying pink I had and went with it. I got a gauge of 6 sts/1" on US5s. They feel like clubs compared to the US2s, but I'll take it! I'm 2.5 repeats into and I can tell it's going to be adorable. I'm already trying to figure out how to make the pleats wider with additional short rows and make it more "twirlable" for the Grand Princess.

Last week marked a major milestone for our family, my Grandpa turned 80. That seems so strange to write. The men in my family tend to have a lot of heart problems. I have a cousin who had his first heart attack at 35. Just a couple of weeks ago, a different cousin in his late 40's had quadruple bypass. Last year, Grandpa had his own scare and now sports a pacemaker. Each gifting event, it's always such a struggle to figure out what to get him. The man wants for nothing. Things he mentions in passing my Aunts or Uncle buy for him. Of course, the "don't waste your money on me" argument happens every time. Gram insisted he didn't need another hat as he babies the one I made him. He won't wear scarves or mittens. Peanut and I sat down last weekend and whipped him up a card. It involved her stencils, markers and LOTS of stickers. Then it hit me...why not do a charity knitting donation in honor of his big birthday? So that's what I've pledged to do. I've chosen the Dulaan Project as the charity of choice for this. I have a lot of odd skeins of wool that will be put to good use as hats. He seemed to enjoy the idea and it sparked interest in the family for the Dulaan Project.

Peanut is wearing the blue dress every where and every moment she can. She's not allowed to wear it to school, but she considers every other waking moment fair game. Even during the strep stint, she wore it to the doctor's office with her cowgirl boots. We went bowling last weekend and she insisted it was what all the young ladies would be wearing. She's covered and warm, so I didn't really care. Funny, two little girls over were dressed in sparkly, red dance outfits.

That's it from here. I've just lost an hour of my life and my servers are still happy. I'm off to bed!

DST & LV Swap Quiz

Damn DST!! That's all I can say. This is way bigger than Y2K ever was. I'm up late tonight updating and bouncing mail servers. Tomorrow and this weekend will be spent running agents overnight from home. Joy, joy, joy. It's not so much the work from home that I mind...it's the fallout of things not going well. Keep your fingers crossed!!

I joined the Lime & Violet swap. I'm pretty excited about it. I think it should be fun. Here's my questionnaire. Please keep in mind that it's late and I've had limited adult conversation this week...

1. What kind of fibers do you prefer? I don't really have a preference. I like things that are soft and smell nice. I don't buy Red Heart Super Saver because it's not soft enough and I don't like the smell. I don't buy fun fur because it makes me crabby to knit. Those are the only things I tend to turn down. I'm not snobby about my yarn at all. I made a scarf out of alpaca and loved it. I have some cashmere blend that I'm using for a scarf. I am the proud owner of a few skeins of Lisa Souza (sock! (L&V, Miss V's Pink Ribbon) and the wool/silk blend in the beautiful shade garden). I'm totally fascinated by self-patterning/striping yarn. I'd love to try some of the new fibers (bamboo, corn, milk, crab shells, etc). I'm really easy to please. I do tend to lean towards more blues and purples. With a resident Princess, it's also hard to stay away from pinks.

2. What kind of weight do you prefer (sock, worsted, bulky)? I tend to shy away from bulky. Doesn't seem like you get much bang for your buck with it. I just started working with sock yarn in the last few months. I tend to like the heavier sock yarns rather than the thinner. Socks that have to be done on US0 needles do not hold up to my attention span at this moment.

3. Do you spin? I do not, but I find it incredibly interesting and would love to give it a try.

4. Do you crochet? Only if I have to. All of my crochet work tends to be unpredictable. Squares turn into odd trapezoids.

5. Are there any books, patterns, magazines would you like to own that you don't? I'd really love to have the new Yarn Harlot book, A Gathering of Lace, Knitting for Peace or Knitting Nell. My little girl is fascinated with my knitting and I think she'd enjoy Knitting Nell a lot. I have a lot of single skeins of yarn I loved and wanted to have but was a bit pricey. I'd love to get something to help put them to functional use.

6. Are you participating in any themed a-longs like the Project Spectrum? I am not. I did last year, but life's been a bit to hectic to keep up with it this year.

7. Do you have a wishlist on Amazon.com or Half.com? (provide a link) I do have an amazon list. It's kind of a catch all I keep up for birthday & holiday list requests from friends and relatives.

8. Any Etsy stores that you would love to get something from? I've always wanted to get something from To Knit Perchance To Dream. I love her bright colors. She really puts some beautiful colorways together.

9. What other crafty things are you involved in (quilting, drawing, painting)? I once had a dream of quilting but I can't cut a straight line to save my life. Even with the ruler things. I did just inherit a nice sewing machine and I do have quite the fabric stash to taunt me, though.

10. What is your favorite sort of scent? I don't like heavy florals. I really like fruity/citrus scents. I like anything that could be tropical. I got a knock off bottle of the new Britney Spears perfume. It's totally my favorite at the moment. It reminds me of cotton candy. It does not make me want to shave me head or not wear panties, though.

11. Do you have a sweet tooth and what kind of sweets do you like best? I think I have more than one sweet tooth!! I like to try different types of chocolate, but love a good Hershey bar here and there. I'm not allergic to anything and tend to be adventurous in my candy tasting. I absolutely love Gobstoppers and Lindt truffles, too. I actually craved Gobstoppers while pregnant!

12. What kind of music do you like? I'm not overly fond of hip-hop or rap, but I like pretty much everything else. I love the free single of the week on iTunes. I was heavily into music before meeting my husband. I'm trying to get back to that. I've recently developed a fondness for Amy Winehouse's "I'm No Good" and Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back". Those are a pretty big leap from the country I've been listening to for quite a while.

13. What do you like to knit? And for whom? I tend to knit smaller things. Baby sweaters seem to be my niche at the moment. I have a 3 year old daughter and I have yet to knit anything "big" for her. I have all of the Wendy (knitandtonic.typepade.com) patterns, just need to pick the yarn to do one for her. I have a couple of shawl patterns that I hope to one day complete, but my life's just a little too crazy right now to focus on that. I tend to like simple, classic things. I've been working on Shedir from knitty.com for months and I think it's the most beautiful thing I've knitted. I did the Branching Out scarf and attempted Clapotis.

14. What sort of things do you like to collect? Nothing really, anymore. I have an extensive snowglobe collection that's been sitting in boxes for the last couple of years. I used to collect dragons. I still love them, but tended to get the cartoony or gothic ones. I love the Chinese style dragons.

15. Do you want needles? And what kind do you prefer? I don't know that I really need needles. Santa brought me some KnitPicks Classic ciculars. They're helpful for sock knitting. I would love some fun stitch markers, though.

I really am easy to please. I love surprises! I'm so very excited about this swap!

PS: I totally suck. I completely forgot to mention that my awesome package from Amy arrived last week. I'll have to post a photo of it soon. Thanks so much Amy!!