Not Calm (dot com)

Today my brother came by to say goodbye before he and his girlfriend move up to Portland.  I'm very sad, and very happy and excited for them.  At least it is within driving distance.  Well, kind of.  The kids were really excited to hear about Mt. Hood, and how there is snow there all year long.  Sophie immediately asked for "skaters for my feet and knit me a scarf" so she and her uncle could go skating.  She even asked if he'd hold her hand.  Can you believe that didn't even make me cry?  I am in denial. 

Last night while I was reading to the girls at bedtime, Sophie (I was in the girls' bed, between them) put both her hands on my cheeks and said, "Mama.  You are so beautiful.  You are not an alien."  Why is that SO funny to me?  I'm laughing *right now*

Does anyone get red wine migraines?  I had a little on Thanksgiving, maybe a glass and a half, and a couple of hours later I got a migraine that decided to hang out off and on until this morning.  Last night I took my last vicodin (left over from an ear infection a year or so ago) and it didn't even help much.  Migraines are one of those things that I really just can't get.  Because getting rid of it requires not only quiet, but quiet AND laying down in the dark for awhile.  Not happening.  At least this time my vision wasn't affected.  I hate that pre-migraine visual disturbance thing, where you start seeing funny spots and you just know that very soon you will feel like someone is drilling through your skull with an electrified titanium jackhammer.  Talk about dread.

I have a sinkfull of dirty dishes waiting for me.  I don't mind washing dishes.  They don't sass me or freak out when water gets in their faces.

egg smell

I am a lucky girl!  Marsha in Japan was looking for the newest Lemony Snicket book and a couple of other things, so we made a trade.  Look what I got!  I gave her really vague ideas of what I wanted and she picked out stuff that I LOVE.  Really.  It makes me feel happy to look at it. 

Willow got a set of construction worker playmobile people when we went to her grandma's for Thanksgiving.  The set was either John's or his younger brother's, which makes it about thirty years old.  It is so great!  I love the colors.  Last night Willow brought me one of the little men and a shovel.  She wanted me to make the man "hold shovel."  The man's grip was a little loose for the shovel, so I picked up another man and let him hold the shovel.  Willow took the original man and the second man with the shovel and they had a little dialog:
man one: HEY! Dat MY shovel!  Gimme dat shovel! MINE!

man two:  NO! MINE SHOVEL!

And then the first little man violently grabbed the shovel away.  Heh.  Also, if you ask Willow, "why?" not attached to anything at all, just "why?" she immediately says, "because."

Sophie's latest insult, directed at John when she woke him up Saturday morning by jumping on the bed: "You are egg-smell." 

You heard it here first.

pretty yarn

If you follow the link to the new Manos colors, you will see the purty green and the very very nice stripey green and blue that I am lusting after.  I have to say that it's almost too nice to knit with.  Really.

for jamie

who wants to know what I'm knitting.  Here's one of the things I finished that I can show.  Mostly they are gifts and must be kept super secret for another few weeks.  I'll post them all after the holidays, because I think there will be a lot!

NO!  Not the sweater, silly.  Just the hat.  Also, here is proof of Willow's eye problem that the eye doctor wants me to treat by patching.  I still haven't found patches, but only looked at one place so far.  I just dread trying to do it.  And I don't think it will work, either. 

Nate is coughing and whimpering.  Time to go cuddle in the very uncomfortable, and full! bed.  I will make body #4.  Sometimes I am glad to be five feet tall.  Not usually, though, because I am forever pulling a muscle in my neck reaching for something in the kitchen.  Yes, I have a little ladder and a step stool, but also FOUR kids, so I don't get those out too much. 

I have knitting callouses

Sophie is standing next to me in her bathing suit PLEADING to go swimming.  She is unreasonable.  Oh good; John is home and just saved the day by offering a bathing suit bubble bath.  She turned it down when it was my idea, but of course when he offered she was all for it. 

I suppose I ought to go referee the fight I hear beginning between Nate and a friend who is over to play.  I need a whistle.

Sophie is the master of surrealists.  Yesterday she called me a "cloud sammich" (sandwich) and when we played Simon says, she said, "Simon says, be a cup.  Simon says, be a lamp."  I couldn't even decipher her rules about who won and lost.  She's too sophisticated for me, I suppose. 

Time is going by so fast.  I haven't been on the computer at all, really.  But I was alerted to THIS (somewhat sheepishly) by my husband.  So, I will say HANDS OFF MY MAN!!  I will not share.  (really, I am not angry I am just in agreement)

I bought a BUNCH of yarn today, something like twelve skeins, to finish up my holiday knitting.  I still have to start my sewing projects, but I bought a few things for the kids and even some other family members.  I want to have ample time for baking and playing with the kids during winter break and enjoy the time with them, instead of being a huge stress freak.

I think I'll go work some more on this hat for my dad.  Maybe I'll go catch up on the last week's  Post Secret before it gets replaced. 

I am knitting around the clock, making gifts for the holidays.  A stack of new fabric is calling from the closet.  Also, I am working on potty training Willow.  I haven't seen the computer screen much lately, and may not for another day or two. 

I bought myself a new pair of pajamas, and wore them all day Sunday.  I could live in them, but don't have any shoes to match.

People I love are moving away.  Soon.  I am really happy for them.  I am so sad for me. 

Here are some photos of the leaf pile the kids (minus Soph, who was at a friend's house) raked and scattered for over an hour.  While we were out, a BIG wind came up, and it got kind of dark.  The boys gathered about twenty plastic grocery bags full of leaves and put them next to the house.  The next time we rake, they will add the twenty bags of leaves to the pile.  Better jumping, you know. 

I have some very important news to report:  I went out on a date with my husband to San Francisco to see this show, and I came home at 3 am, reeking of cigarettes and beer!  (I didn't smoke at all, just was backstage, (I'm not above name dropping!) where there was lots of smoke.)  It is so good to know that I still have it in me to get out to a big city and have fun and stay up late.  Who knew?  It was wonderful to see everyone, though far too short a time to see them in.  (A preposition is a perfectly good thing to end a sentence with.)  My brother and his lovely girlfriend babysat for us.  Saturday I did stay home with the kids while John went to the second show.  I, uh, fell asleep before 9 pm with the girls, while the boys stayed up in the living room, laughing their asses off at this totally inappropriate film.  I used to be a responsible parent.  They wore me down.  Also, I forgot about the light saber penis thing and did you know that the f word can be in a PG rated movie?  Other words, too.  Ahem. 

Today we took the youngest three with us to visit friends in Oakland.  Alex stayed with a friend.  We had a really nice time with people I'd love to see lots more of.  There was great food and tea and conversation.  I need to get out more often.  I get so wrapped up in my little planet here that when something that shouldn't really be that big of a deal ~ say, the fact that last weekend I caught up on the laundry and it is all washed and put away and I have kept that up for a whole week ~ makes me so happy, I feel like the heavens have opened and angels are singing and everything is wonderful.  Don't get me wrong: it IS a miracle that I caught up on the laundry.  It's a first.  But, I am bothered that doing so makes me so deliriously happy.  Something about that isn't right.  I want to be that happy and excited over more happy and exciting things that aren't chores. 

I have made this cake twice.  Today I took it to the party, and I think that everyone really liked it.  Either that, or people were being extra nice to me because I have the worst kind of cystic acne thing on the end of my nose.  Nate and I stayed in and played cards and did some sewing while everyone else went for a hike.  I'm really really sleepy, so here are some pictures (yes, that is an anarchy patch on Willow's dress. I got it a couple of years ago for Sophie, but the place seems in my quick googling to be no more).  Hope everyone else had a great weekend.  Go visit Gwendolyn and Daisy and leave them comments about their adorable new babies!

an unfortunate meeting

Further proof of my unfit mothering: I allowed my boys to meet this dreadful man.  He writes awful stories that no child has any business reading.  Furthermore, I read them several (perhaps all) of the books, and not only did I use my own library card to borrow said books, I also used it to check out versions of the books on tape, which were all read aloud by either the author or some odd hollywood person.  I even purchased the tickets for the booksigning. 

As you can see, I am a complete ne'er-do-well, washout, underachiever parent.  Which, in this case, means I am fun!  (I even let John take them while I wrangled the girls.)

I.can.not.sleep.  Side effect of medicine I am taking.  Think I'll go lay in the dark and recharge best I can.