Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Baby knitting

I don't know why, but lately I have been obsessed with baby knitting.  Maybe it's the idea that baby stuff is little.  You can knit a pair of booties in an evening.  Really.  OK, some of you may be saying 'yeah, right, I can't do that', but I can and I am sure you could do it in maybe two evenings.  To knit a pair of socks takes me significantly longer.  The only problem I have is that there are no babies to knit for currently.  My kids are in their early 20's.  It will probably be a few years before they even start considering having families of their own.  The only child I have that has kids won't talk to me, so I don't even know HOW to get knitted goodies to his children.

So, what should I do to solve my dilemma?  Well, I mentioned something about this dilemma tonight at Sit and Knit.  These people are GENIUS, I tell you!  I guess that is why I love them so much. Terri said I should go ahead and knit a few items.  Just tuck them away somewhere for future use.  She said once my kids start having kids of their own, it will all be at once.  This way, I can get a jump start on it and still solve that bit of an itch I have.

I know, why would I knit for a baby that I don't know the gender of yet?  Well, I used to make things for my kids before they were born and I didn't know their gender.  Added bonus - I love brights for babies.  There really is no 'gender' to brights and gem-tones - I am talking about lovely ruby reds, beautiful sapphire blues, rich emerald greens, the sunshine southwest feel of turquoise, all of it.  I love these colors. I am so excited, I cannot decide what to knit first. I believe it will be one of my goals for the year.  I'll try to knit one item (or two) a year so I can scratch my baby itch and get a few things made up for my future grandchildren.

What a great idea!  Thanks Terri!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Labor Day

We celebrated Labor Day in the way only we would do- with lots of labor.  Ethan and Baylor are both back at school, Ethan on Sunday and Baylor on Monday.  Steve was working all day and so was I.

Ethan had school on Monday, so he had to go back on Sunday to finish any homework.  Walkie, though, spent the night with Steve and I.  It was a lot of fun.  He's such a big goofy dog, but wouldn't let anyone hurt any of us.  He is just a big sweetie that loves spending time here on our farm.  He runs up to the barn, rides around with Steve and TJ, and overall just has a great time.  We are glad that Erika doesn't mind us keeping him occasionally.  He will probably come over at least once a week until Ethan gets bogged down in all of his school work.  Even then, he might be over.

Baylor left yesterday to go back to his internship.  There were some changes to the internship - not sure how it all works, but he's only getting 32 hours in per week.  He's trying to get another job to supplement his income.  Also, he may spend the spring semester in Tucson!  How exciting is that?  I need to try to get in touch with my cousin who lives out there.  It would be nice for him to get to know some more family members. 

Steve is working in the field.  Hopefully, we will get another cutting of hay before the season ends.  None of the row crops are ready for harvest yet, but they will be soon.  The beans are turning yellow and in some places will be ready in two or three weeks.  The corn ears are starting to drop and the stalks are browning nicely.  This week, the temps are in the 70's and low 80's dropping down to the 50's at night.  It is beautiful.

I took an extra day off work to get some things done.  Linda and I went together and bought the rights to a 10 yd roll off dumpster.  We have it for 10 days and I don't know how much more we'll be able to get into it.  I am hoping it sifts down a bit before next weekend because I have a lot of stuff I still want to put in it.  So far, though, I got to clean out my garage and got rid of a lot of stuff - old fold up chairs, lots of paper, plastics that are not recyclable, lots of stuff went out the door.  My goal is to actually park my car in the garage this winter.  I did a lot of purging and sorting so far.  I have another day of purging and sorting to go and then I'll put it all away!  I am going vertical to get a lot of this stuff up off the ground.  There is so much that needs to be organized, but now it's not as bad as it was.  I am so close to parking in the garage.  YEAH!!!! 

Some people consider January 1 as the time to set goals and start working towards something.  For me, the first of September always feels more like the time to do this reflection and goal setting.   I am already well on my way to actually completing one of my goals.  To keep the momentum going, I am writing down all  that I've completed.  It will keep me motivated.  Just a note in my planner of what was done when. I am hoping to get caught up on many things I've let go (knitting, cleaning, etc.).  I am really happy with all that I've accomplished and would like to do the same thing with the basement, but that will wait until after the holidays. 

Here is to goals.  I like that term so much better than resolutions.  Resolutions are made to be broken, goals are attainable.  What will yours be?