happy saturday!

my friends at orangehouse posted this earlier today. i laughed so hard and long at these coiffed poodles that i knew it was too good not to pass along. enjoy!




also, i just now filled up noodle's snack bowl with snapea crisps and snagged a few from the top of his tiny bowl and popped them in my mouth. then it went like this:
Noodle: Noooooooooooo! My green beans! Don't eat them!
Me: Oh, calm down.
Noodle: (makes that sound of disgust & frustration----a long low growl, you know the one.... reserved for use by kids and designed as the ultimate wordless weapon against parents. come on, kid! you're two years old! couldn't this wait a few years?)
Me: (attempting to prompt good manners, despite his ugly display of early-onset teenagerdom) What do you say?----squeaked out in the most annoying mommy-voice i can muster.
Noodle: DON'T TOUCH MY FOOD!
Me: (conjuring up something i perfected during my own childhood, makes that very same sound of disgust & frustration.)

chilly chill

the first day of school is lurking less than two weeks away. *sigh* i am a summer lover, so i am sort of dreading the big change looming. i've so enjoyed having angus here with us all day this summer. but soon he will go back to spending most of his waking hours with people other than his family and noodle and i will go back to being a two-man team on school days. that is, until he's finished with potty training and trots off to nursery school part-time without even looking back to wave goodbye. *again, sigh.*

anyhow, i got off track. this was supposed to be a post about sharing info on a great deal i found on some back to school necessities at kroger. i've had my eye on these awesome BPA-free 2-cup food chilling containers from Fit & Fresh all summer, but kept waiting for them to go on sale and they finally did. i am kind of fanatical about trying to avoid BPAs. it used to be hard to find plastics without them. but now, thanks to studies like the recent out of Harvard, BPA-free plstics are getting easier to locate in mainstream grocery stores.


so... yay, me. instead of $9.99 for a six-pack i scored them last night for $6. i think i may even snag up one or two of their bento box sets before the sale ends.

City Skyline scarf

My First Pattern!!

Needle: US 10 / 6.0 mm
Yarn: Dream in Color Classy
1 skeins = 250.0 yards
Color: Grey Tabby
Finished size: 96" after blocking

Pattern is as follows:

CO 26 stitches.

Rows 1 -4 Knit in garter stitch.

Row 5 Slip 1, K1, *(YO, K2tog)* , repeat to last 2 sts, K2

Row 6 Slip 1, knit to end

Row 7 Slip 1, K1, (K2tog, YO) repeat to last 2 sts, K2

Row 8 Slip 1, Knit to end

Row 9 - 12 Knit in garter stitch

Row 13, same as Row 5, etc.

Continue in the pattern until piece is desired length. Block lightly.
Mine measured 96" after blocking, 80" or so before.

This one was made for Wonder Wollen's upcoming birthday, but I am most definitely making more of these really soon. And that yarn........dreamy.

i s a w m y b l o o d y v a l e n t i n e

last night at the national theater in richmond. and it was amazing. i had to slink around with my camera hidden in order to snap off these shots. even though practically everyone there was shooting crappy iPhone shots, the security staff kept picking on me for having "professional gear" and threatening to confiscate my camera. am i a total geek for being flattered that they thought i resembled something of a professional? yes. definitely.
P.s. i took these photos. don't steal them or use them without my consent. ya dig?

we are retacular spidermans and you can be retacular mary jane.

we are retacular spidermans and you can be retacular mary jane.
Originally uploaded by Hollis Queen

High Five

Happy Birthday, Angus. Thank you for your smile and laughter, for your sweetness and your kind heart, for the unique way you see the world, for your silliness, and for loving me. You are the apple of my eye, kid. Five years ago today the world became a better place.

P.U. b gone

i have two geriatric dogs and an extraordinarily overactive sense of smell. you can imagine how much time i waste trying to reconcile these unfortunate constants in my life. even the cleanest house still carries that distinct smell associated with the cold hard fact that our dogs are sadly and steadily marching toward life beyond the rainbow bridge. i already bathe each doggie bi-weekly due to angus' allergies, and that doesn't seem to help much. but now i found an ally in my ongoing war against pet funk. and its a green cleaning product. you may not care about this, but i almost did back flips* today when i used the stuff and it actually worked. it was as simple as this: sprinkle the unscented granules, let it sit (preferably overnight) and then vacuum it up. no lilies of the valley or cherries jubilee scent left behind to mask the smell...just an absence of odor. brilliant! i pass along this bit o' knowledge----it is my gift to you.


*but then i remembered that i can't do one.

Summer of Independence

It is a cold hard fact that I love summer. Bright sunny mornings spent outdoors melting into lazy lunchtimes and then hot and sticky afternoons perfect for a good read and a cozy nap, followed by a long golden evening filled with bubble blowing and bug catching and water fights. Oh the freedom! Oh the possibility that summer promises! But wait....oh yeah. I have a nearly five year-old and a tiny monster currently trapped in that terrifyingly fantastic period between age 2 and 3. Needless to say, my "me" time is basically nonexistent, I spend a large chunk of my day searching for things the boys misplace but NEED to find IMMEDIATELY or the WORLD WILL CRUMBLE, and my attention is currently a battleground between the boys and the only one losing is me.
So, as summer began inching closer to becoming a reality and it started to become clear that I needed A Plan or all that freedom and independence was going to swallow me alive. Momma's nerves are simply unable to withstand the amount of "do this" and "watch this" and "where is my _____" and "help me with that" and "I can't find my _____" and "I can't do it" which are thrown my way daily. Correction: All day, every day. Summer 2009 just has to be the Big One. The one in which each of my boys discover how proud he feels accomplishing things on his own, that ends with us never needing to diaper Noah again, with Angus able to execute the tying of his own shoelaces, the pouring of his own milk, with Noah dressing himself, and maybe even with Angus riding his bike sans training wheels or truly reading his first book. The way I see it is this: if these little buddies of mine are in such a big hurry to shake all the baby off them and continue growing up way too fast, then they've got to show some independence while they're at it.
And then I saw this via every little thing. Dang a lang! jane's apron went and put a name to my goal for the Summer of 2009 and now i am apparently part of an actual movement....one with a pledge and all.

Where age-appropriate and within reason,
I pledge to help my kids
develop their independence
through practical activities that are
directly related to life skills.

Brace yourself, boys. Though you will want to resist this change at first, you'll love how great it feels to be doing things for yourself. Its what big kids do, fellas.

The end of the year is bitterweet.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Summer is now.

Welcome back, school-free days, bare feet, mosquito bites, tank tops, flip flops, pit-stains, grass stains, cooking out, summer reading, Popsicles, chasing down the ice cream man, seeking shade, marco polo, high dives, cut-offs, sunscreen, farmer tans, beach hair, freckled noses, dandelion wishes, kick the can, sleeping late, lightning bugs, ant hills, oscillating fans, playgrounds, sipping water straight from the hose, hot cars, freeze-tag, frosty beers, reruns, fresh cut grass, afternoon naps, family vacation, roller coasters, sandy toes, skipping stones, picking flowers, growing food, fresh local honey, farmers markets, holding hands, picnic blankets, butterfly kisses, and laying on your back in the grass and watching the clouds roll by.



Welcome back, summer. I miss you when you're gone. Let the good summer times roll.

the bigtime

seeing your friends succeed at what they love doing rules.



the show was fantastic and it was good to see everyone again. they're away more than they're home right now. i loved seeing the expressions on the faces of the kids in the crowd. their enthusiasm, excitement and love of the music was so pure. i hope the guys in LOG notice that and use it to fuel themselves in those inevitable moments when touring gets to be a drag. it'd be a shame to make it to the top only to find yourself miserable. not that i think that'll happen to LOG. i'm pretty sure they realize that they're kinda living the dream.

library day

our book bag was overfilled with goodies after a trip to the library today. i love the library. FREE books, videos, music, and more. all they ask is that you return them when you are finished. deal! as a habitual abuser of both hoarding and purging, the system of controlled borrowing is so well suited to my needs. and it is FREE to use. need i say more? when i see you people at barnes & noble buying a huge stack of books you'll read once i can't help but think there may be something a bit wrong in your head. but kudos for helping keep america's economy up and at 'em. sorta.

so, in the bag were: for tony, the brand new palahniuk, pygmy, for me, the paper version of a favorite blog, and for the boys a timely little read entitled Just Like Bossy Bear. it is a huge hit with its hilarious illustrations, simple text, and its "don't-be-such-a-bad-influence-Little Mister Bossy Pants" message. i am a big fan of horvath's Ugly Dolls, so this book had me excited even before i picked it up, and then it didn't disappoint. hooray!

the rest of bag was weighed down with various knitting books, pro-potty propaganda intended for the brainwashing of the noodle, and a few books on tape-style things for the kiddos to enjoy in the car and a couple of Bach & Tchaikovsky CDs for angy, our little book & music appreciator.

i love the library.

think before you drink

thanks to gonzomama for posting this.

home again

i am looking forward to year after year of going to sleep and waking up beside this man. although, i am totally fine with him getting up first to man the kiddos while i sleep for a few extra minutes.

Flannery

Flannery O' Connor, originally uploaded by Lavatican.

my wait is over! the copy of Flannery: A Life of Flannery O'Connor that i had been waiting and waiting and waiting to get my hands on for what seemed like forever finally arrived at the library and it is mine for the next two weeks! she's been my favorite writer since about 7th grade. i think only chuck taylors, shit talking, and flannery o'connor managed to outlast my many fleeting tastes of adolescence and still remain favoites of mine to this day.

if only i had already mastered the knitting-while-reading skill i have been working toward mastering. maybe that's where books on tape come in. is that why they are popular? hmmmm....

****also...i am so in love with the portrait of flannery from the cover that i found the artist, Lauren Pope, on Etsy and contacted her about purchasing a print. they are available here. my print of Wiseblood: A Portrait of Flannery O'Connor is en route. yippee!

currently in heavy rotation

tiny miracle cure

all hail medical science. thanks to the insertion of ear tubes, noodle went from being continuously plagued by ear infections to not having even one since they went in on december 26, 2007. if any other moms out there are on the fence about getting the ear tube surgery for their own child who is prone to repeated or prolonged ear infections---- just do it. the relief was instantaneous for him and the surgery lasts like 5 minutes. i was told that each tube was so small that when they finally worked their way out of his ears i wouldn't even notice them. but i didn't expect them to be this tiny. it is remarkable that something so tiny and primitive (seiously, a tube getting poked through your eardrum? and left in there to fall out on its own as it is outgrown? how basic is that?) could be such an easy solution to a terrible problem.

see ball?!

angus has always had the sweetest voice ever. actually, he has just always been the sweetest little boy ever. watch this movie from two years ago today and you'll agree with me. it makes me cry...his voice, his excitement, his love for his daddy. oh, angus. my sweet sweet boy.

A Year Ago This Week.

looking back is bitterweet.

these are my girls