Party Day Fun

A glimpse of the fun had last night at the Evil Rodent's Lair in honor of Ben's bday. We ventured through some nasty rain and wind to get there and home again, but it was not in van, for all who came had fun. (And we documented that fun)

Seven

SEVEN! 7!!! Wait, 7?

He's really seven today. I'm so excited, proud and amazed at the prospect of being the mama to this particular seven year old and yet it still feels a little unreal.

Ninja Cowl

I've discovered that I'm a Process Knitter, not a Product Knitter. Thanks to Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's book, The Yarn Harlot Casts Off, I've been learning a lot about myself as a knitter. I'll write more about that latter, but basically I know that I like knitting simply for the fun of knitting. If I drop a stitch, mess up a pattern slightly, it doesn't throw me off the whole project. I also don't go back and rip out stitches and correct my mistake. Maybe as I get better at knitting and the kids get older I'll become more of a perfectionist but for now, every row I'm able to knit has been hard fought and I can't justify ripping it out for a minor offense, like knitting two together when I shouldn't have.

Anyway, I had just finished her chapter that determines if you're a Process or Product Knitter when I cast off this cowl that just did not come out right. It was a very simple cast on Xteen stitches and knit in the round, but I made it too wide at the bottom and then tried to decrease it and made it too narrow at top. So, it is what it is...just a failed cowl in my eyes BUT to little boys with imaginations? It's the fun new play thing used to combat the final days of winter boredom. (I hope) I've already been asked to make another one "Quickly please!" because it's hard to have to share this one.

There are about 20 more pics of them playing with this in various ways but I think a glimpse is enough. (And I don't think blogger will support that much crazy kid-cowl-cuteness)

Kicking It Home School Style

We had our weekly hang out day with our local homeschooling group on Tuesday this week. It was a smaller turn out thank usual thanks to a cold and a stomach flu that are making the rounds, but still lots of fun. Thanks to the sick peeps for keeping their germs at home too! We DO appreciate it, though we missed you.

Amidst the fun of the day, big kids playing capture the flag, nerf gun fights, and cupcakes to celebrate a birthday, Nate could be found in a big kid's shadow and it was not his brother's. Nate spent the entire three hours we were there following Griffin, who is a teen, around. It all started because Griffin was kind enough to get an extra Nerf gun for Nate to use and therefore (without knowing it) he won Nate's affection and adoration for the remainder of the day.

It's one of the many things I love about homeschooling. The whole "Socialization" argument? Yeah, it doesn't hold water. this wonderful exchange would never happen in a traditional school setting, and my kids wouldn't have the benefit of friendships with such a variety of amazing kids. More on that another time though....there is a hungry baby around these parts!

Mmm...cupcakes!!!

Dynamic Duo

These two are fast proving to be inseparable. Granted it's mainly due to Nate following Syda wherever she might roll, but she does look for him often. No one can make a little girl laugh quite as much as a big brother. Syda shares in her mama's good fortune of having two big brothers, to make her happy, smiley and giggly.

PS

Yes, we have a camera again!!! Let somewhat regular blogging resume!

Some 'Splainin To Do!

So our camera is broken, hence the lack of entries lately - well, that's the reasoning in my head anyway. It has nothing to do with the fact that I haven't mastered raising an infant, preschooler and home schooled first grader yet, nothing at all! The sad story is that I foolishly let Nate use the camera one night and he did something to the lens to keep it from opening. Tim tried to take it apart for repairs and realized he couldn't fix it a bit too late. In my defense - we (yes WE, both Tim & I) had let Nate play with the camera countless times before and never had a problem.

The kicker is, I broke this same model camera in September about 10 days before Syd was born by using the wrong USB cable with it. We were fortunate to have the funds at the time to rush order a new camera so we could have pics of the birth, which will likely never been seen except by those of us who were there. But still, I'm thankful to have them. Anyway, since this replacement camera broke just weeks after Yule we do not have the funds to replace it just yet. So, the blog will mainly contain my ramblings, random links to video, and some older photos I hadn't got around to posting yet.

That said, I'm selling a few wraps to raise money for a new camera so if you are looking for a deal on a great baby carrier or know someone who is please email me. I've vowed to myself and Tim that the replacement camera and Nate's hands shall never meet!

New Year!

I don't think I've ever made a New Year's Resolution. I think they set us up to fail. They always start with, "This year I will be more, do more, do less etc." Why do we have to wait for New Year to do this anyway? If we want to make a change to life we should do it when it feels right to us, not dictated by old traditions. I've been thinking a lot about change lately. The change in our lives since Sydney joined us, the change in the boys from season to season and sometimes day to day too. Big changes and small, I welcome them right now.