mamieknits

Anew

2012-01-25T20:50:00.000-08:00

Do you believe in dreams? Ask me three years ago and I am not sure of the answer to that one. Younger Me might have said, yes, of course. Three years ago Me? Not so sure. Me? Today? Equivocal resounding Yes. I write this from my new home (for now). My home in a town that was a name only 8 years ago when we first started passing through this area. 5 years ago when we first stopped in it. 3 years

An appendectomy and Adieu

2011-12-31T17:46:00.000-08:00

Our 17th anniversary started with a sponge bath. A very thorough sponge bath. Not a sexy role playing thing, it was a bath of necessity. As I helped Tim wash away 2 days of hospital funk, scrubbed his hair, his scruff, I thought "So this is what they mean about sickness and health". I told him that thought. We've been together a long time, almost half of our lives. We're weathered together, our

Inked

2011-12-08T22:03:00.000-08:00

Bones knit themselves in the most beautiful of ways. When you fracture a bone it is apart, the strongest part of your body. It repairs the damage first by laying a new structure, a filigree really. Over time that delicate web fills itself in and becomes what is called a callus. The callus is never really the bone it was before, it is never as elegant, never as joined. But that callus marks that

MIA

2011-11-14T20:25:00.001-08:00

I don't mean to be MIA. I don't want to be MIA. I do that thing where I write blog posts in my head or make comments on some of the amazing writing that I get to read every so often. But it does not translate, the words to page or rather screen. I spend a lot of time working lately. It crept in, the hours incresing as they had to. In a way I decided I wanted to practice a little, anticipating

RIP Steve. From the Eye of a Little.

2011-10-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

Do you let your children play with your iPhone? We do. It is a great babysitter. Well, not babysitter. But, it is great, you know? They, with their facile minds, just get the iPhone. It was made for them, for their small swiping fingers and lateral thinking. For the last year my small ones, the ones I swore would never have their own cell phones until 35, have usurped, explored, played. I know

Good Stuff

2011-09-25T17:28:00.000-07:00

I want to tell you so many things. I want to tell you about feeling good. So good. Because more than one person and place told me I was needed and valuable and would make their place better. Because we wandered through open places where homes sprout out of the earth, homes that I dreamt of but forgot of that dreaming until the doors opened wide. Because yesterday a wide open opportunity

For Her, For Me

2011-09-19T22:40:00.000-07:00

It had been months since I sat in front of my sewing machine. July, actually. The machine collected dust in the corner and any and all projects in the queue sat, neglected or forgotten or undone. I had ideas about this and that; a quilt, a knit hat, a new t-shirt handstitched. But these hands, they remained idle. Well, not idle but tapping out work or turning book pages or wrestling the young

Remember

2011-09-11T19:06:00.000-07:00

51 minutes. If you have the space and the ear and the time, please listen. Hard but the loss, each has a story. Thank you StoryCore for doing this for us.

240 and Ticking

2011-08-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

I started 365 on January 1st. I wanted a challenge, a recording. I wanted to pick up my camera daily and work it, work my eye and my equipment. I wanted the discipline. I am 240 days in with a few missed days here and there which is not too hard to shrug off. I am finding that I may be getting more than I thought from this year of shooting. I may have recorded the last year we will live in

A pie for Mikey

2011-08-14T15:30:00.000-07:00

I work in health care. I work in home care. I work with the sick and sometimes the dying. Many of the people I see are more in the ebb than the flow. It is what I do and I feel that I am in it because I do it well. Over my years in home care I have come to appreciate so many things; the way people feel when they are finally home, in their own clothes, surrounded by their familair things,

Mothering :: Lessons

2011-08-11T17:50:00.000-07:00

Last night I did the unthinkable. I withheld my love from my children. They had completely dismantled a handmade necklace, scattering it in every direction. When I found them it was too late to salvage the piece, bedtime was minutes away and my head was going to explode. Fuming, I yelled for them to get to their room! and then went into my office to try to settle myself. It was Tim’s turn for

Blogher11 :: Unmoored

2011-08-09T13:30:00.000-07:00

Last year I attended the annual Blogher conference in NYC, my first. I posted about it the day after and I still feel strongly in my conclusion that Blogher is whatever you make it to be. I went to Friday of the conference this year and I do want to speak of the experience but cautiously, very cautiously. Because for me this year felt totally different and although not terrible, I am not putting

It was a Good Trip

2011-08-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

It was a good trip but now we are home again. So quickly we fall back into the routine of life; watering the garden, messing up every room in the place, returning to the work of patient care. Forgetting. It was hard to leave Sunday, we lingered in Auburn, having lunch and walking around the wooden sidewalks, stopping into the antique store, the Alehouse. It was hard to plunge back into the

Fear and Freedom

2011-07-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

I have to chuckle a bit after reading the last post. Somehow I thought I would find the time to write in the maelstrom that is life on the road. It feels as if I wrote that post months past and a minute ago. And tomorrow it is time to head back South, somewhat weary from the time away but also very very changed. The last few weeks have solidified some very important beliefs that Tim and I hold,

From the Road

2011-07-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

Sheepishly trying to jump back in ... It is mid-July and we are in the first few days of our long weeks away. We worked our asses off for this, juggling the boys and the stress and trying to remain calm and trying to get all the proverbial ducks in a row before leaving. For once I finished every bit and speck of paperwork and left the office Wednesday free of work laptop and work obligations,

An Open Letter to the Father of my Children

2011-06-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

Hey there, pardner. I apologize in advance as I am feeling kinda' sentimental today. Also, I didn't get you anything for Father's Day so I want to make it up to you... Your Birthday 2011 So, a few years ago you became a dad. Let's make that capital DAD, and it has been more than a few years. Four, to be exact. And you came into it with twins so therefore it was with guns blazing. From Day 1

Wahe Guru

2011-06-17T23:40:00.000-07:00

Something happened to me today. And it was wonderful. Ten days ago I made a committment to practice yoga for 21 days. Every day. The decision was prompted by a Yoga Journal article from January of this year. I skimmed it and realized I needed to do this. And so I embarked on daily yoga practice. I did not think it would be such a big deal. I usually take 3 or 4 classes a week, have practiced in

Now is the Time

2011-06-08T21:01:00.000-07:00

Now is the Time for This. It is a new practice that I am taking to, telling myself the above daily. This changes constantly; it may be work or the dishes, reading to the boys or cleaning up after them, taking a photo or being in the garden. I am trying to remind myself that 'Now is the Time for This' in order to stay, not wander so far from the moments. And so Now is the Time for This ...

We interrupt this broadcast ...

2011-05-26T16:44:00.000-07:00

Though I feel that I am infrequently here lately, I just wanted to direct you to my Mondo Beyondo site where I think I will be spending some quality time for a few weeks. This second round is doing good things for me and giving me the Uumph! I needed to feel a little more connected. Feel free to read along as it goes.

[En]raptured

2011-05-21T18:22:00.000-07:00

Yeah, yeah. Could not resist. It's just that I did wonder a little, you know? But rather than go down the line of commenting on the latest failed prediction of the end of the world as we know it, I thought I would put up a few pictures that I have been, well, raptured by lately. Flowers, what is it about the things that just make me feel 'beauty' as it should be? I love the full blown roses just

Homage to Vintage

2011-05-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday I visited a Quilt Show at one of our local libraries. It was small and earnest and featured many vintage quilts that came from family of the quilting circle. Each had a little tag telling the story of the quilt if it was known. And each one drew me in, close, closer to study the lines of its life. There is something so special, so spectacular to me in those long lines of stitches. Up

Dreaming + Garden = Mondo

2011-05-13T21:02:00.000-07:00

Five years ago Tim and I took a trip North. We were visiting family in the Pacific Northwest and tacked on a week to head to Canada. We spent some of our Canadian time on a little piece of land called Salt Springs Island. I actually posted about it here when this blog was first started. That island changed me. Quite literally in many ways. I remember we carefully motored off the ferry onto small

A [Mama's] Day

2011-05-08T23:40:00.000-07:00

Camping, Park Play, Ojai, Drive Home ... Sick kids now. But fun while it lasted Photo credit :: Mace

Food is Good

2011-05-07T20:59:00.000-07:00

Food is good. This is something we all know. Lately we have had some good, no, great food around here and I thought I would share a few links. It has been the season of hand pies, the perfect blend of dough and filling and portable to boot. And a few other tidbits .... Hand Pies :: A long time back I read a post about the book Mad Hungry and the easy and to-die-for pastry dough she includes. I

365 :: One Third

2011-05-03T17:02:00.000-07:00

The day I started 365 I had some apprehension. I wondered where I would find the time to take and upload and process and post a picture. I wondered if I would quit. It seems like it was a blink ago but counting the days by number shows you that one third of 2011 has passed by and there is something magical about having captured one moment from each of those days. I made it to Day 100 before I

To Run or Not to Run ...

2011-04-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

Last week I decided that it was time to start running. Because here I am, 35, watching friends and friends of friends on Twitter do the Couch to 5K and I suddenly thought that this is something I could do. Me, the girl that loves yoga and having her feet firmly planted on the ground unless they are firmly fitted to bike pedals. Me, the girl with a generous ass and thighs that go right along

2011-04-25T20:24:00.000-07:00

They turned 4. They turned four and they care so much about good guys and bad guys. They want to defend and rebuild and shoot something. They want to make things and do things and ignore requests and sometimes dance, and sometimes fight and almost never eat. Mason laughs like me. He also yells like me, with these immediate sharp excalmations of purpose that make everyone jump and run to see if

A Precursor

2011-04-23T17:43:00.000-07:00

They had their birthday party today. They requested waffles and pajamas. So that is what we did. Well, some of us did it. My boys? The ones that have worn their super pajamas for the last three months regardless of time of day or temperature? Today they chose to wear real people clothing (they didn't even layer the pajamas under their real clothes which is bizarre). I think I am now sold on a

[Home][Work]

2011-04-21T16:19:00.000-07:00

Things have been really busy around here for the last few months. The beginning of the year generated the idea that we might like to leave this place someday and that brought the realization that leaving here would likely mean selling this home. Which then lit a proverbial fire under our asses to get to work on all the half-finished, undone projects. I say proverbial fire under ass because things

Baby {Making}

2011-04-14T21:58:00.000-07:00

A few years ago I had no idea what babies needed. I did not have any babies. I had ideas about what they needed but these were far from concrete. Now, 4 years out I feel that I have a better grasp. Babies need diapers (lots), something to eat (breast/other as long as they are fed) and lots and lots of your time. Not much else really. Well, they usually get lots of other things but don't you think

To Boyhood

2011-04-05T22:26:00.000-07:00

We went for a hike yesterday afternoon. It was a lovely day, a well known trail. Top of the aptly named Mountain Avenue, long fire road that can take you for miles and miles if that is what you want. Yesterday we went up with our boys, no stroller. We have done it before and had to turn around after the first big hill. This time was different. Slow, yes. Water stops for Mace every 15 seconds or

180

2011-04-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Last Friday This Friday Cannot say I am looking forward to the Summer, the 95 degree spike made that evident. Back to some cooler weather and time at the sewing machine ... hope I have a few minutes this week to show what I have been up to. Until then, stay warm/cool/dry/happy? Who knows anymore.

White. Out.

2011-03-28T08:17:00.000-07:00

We came up to the Cabin for the weekend for a much needed escape to the high Sierra area. We brought good friends that were game for the trip even though 8+ feet of snow fell in four days and more piled on top throughout the week. We were pretty sure the water would not work and that we might be low on propane and that there might be certain complications with roads and access and stuff. But all

Gone and Back

2011-03-22T18:09:00.000-07:00

My parents were away for a week or so, North to see their other children. They take the trip as often as they can and I always find it occurs at just the right time. I will not lie, living in a multi-generational home has its up and down trajectories. There is a lot of compromise and sometimes misunderstandings or miscommunication. There is also a lot of extra love and support and hands so I tend

How Does your Garden Grow?

2011-03-19T17:10:00.000-07:00

To answer :: sometimes I am not really sure. But it does. It will be our second real season with raised beds and I still feel a little thrill when I see them in the backyard. What it is about the growing of things that I find so very very satisfying? There is something about watching little bits of seed that have been placed by your hand come through, fight up through the soil and then make

Let It Be

2011-03-16T10:06:00.000-07:00

Sometimes life feels a little bit like a zoo with all the feedings, cleaning out the mucky pens, trying to keep all the animals happy. Sometimes I feel a little too breathless and the attempts to practice yoga and eat right and juggle responsibilities approach overwhelming. Sometimes nothing gets done right and opportunities are missed and it makes me feel sad. But there is always a bright

What to do.

2011-03-13T21:04:00.000-07:00

I had a whole post on the garden written on Thursday but then Friday happened and it has made words stand still and not seem very important. The images that we have seen, that have been shown live as they happen have made some deep part still, in sadness and terror and shades of disbelief. On Friday night an inane newscaster kept asking how many lost as Tim and I watched with horrified eyes as

365 :: Caught

2011-03-02T09:04:00.000-08:00

I've needed a little push with the camera the last few days so I thought I would gather the last 60 days. 60 days? Seems so quick and yet so many more to go. Already I love how the project365 allows days to be captured even if it is just one moment in the endless 24 hour cycle. Almost better than blogging. :) 3.6.5 :: January 3.6.5 :: February (plus 2) There are so many things I would love

Home. Home? Home.

2011-02-27T13:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we helped our best friends move. They are moving from an adorable cottage in the high Foothills to an adorable cottage in the small downtown area. We came by to pick up their oven (yes, the stove saga continues) and stayed to help with box moving and for moral support. As the movers slowly cleared the house and basement of its contents we talked and had a beer and lugged tote boxes into

Tidbits

2011-02-24T22:03:00.000-08:00

Thought I would share a few fun things as I try to get back on the blogging horse. Patchwork. I started this a long time ago, called it my Summertime Pretty Patchwork quilt to be. All those squares became a little overwelming so I put it away. After finishing the boys' quilt, all of a sudden, it seemed doable. So out it came. Happy to say the quilt top is almost there and I have a great

A Finished Quilt

2011-02-22T10:22:00.000-08:00

Last week I picked up a patient that lives in the old historical home section of our town. The home is all beautiful old moulding and detailed finishing and as I walked back to his bedroom I peeked (as I always do) through doorways and around corners. The first spare bedroom held a high bed covered in a huge wedding ring quilt, crisp and colorful in the window light. Another room held more quilts

LOVE :: Making Valentines

2011-02-12T15:32:00.000-08:00

Always a wrench to be thrown into the works .. now we are dealing with a fevered ear-aching really sad little boy (with another one on his heels, I am quite sure). Ah, sick season. I should learn not to declare anything any more. But I can still muster up a little LOVE. A few months ago I was sucked into the vortex that is Pinterest. If you are not there yet, I do apologize for enabling you.

Long Weekend of LOVE

2011-02-10T22:27:00.000-08:00

Last year I actually pulled off 7 days about things that I LOVE. This time around I am aiming for the long weekend (little stomach virus messing around with our innards and other distractions being what they are). Thought I would start off with a set of things, my Thing 1 and Thing 2 (Cat in the Hat has been Mace's book of choice for over a week now). They had a Vday party at school today and

Shift :: Perspective

2011-02-07T06:50:00.000-08:00

I think I have made the resurgence of love for photography abundantly clear round these parts. I am still finding great joy in picking up the 'real' camera on a daily basis because I love what it does to my mind and its eye. The interesting thing about this month past was the way taking a picture a day changed my perspective about living in general. I find photos such a conduit into the seeing

Simple Gift

2011-02-01T18:01:00.000-08:00

There has been an onslaught of children's birthdays in our lives and that means the need for something to bring to the birthday parties. I have really wanted to stay true to the idea that we need to give less and use what is on hand ... plus I am obsessed with chalk lately which led to a really great birthday gift idea. This is really just a piece of plywood that Tim cut down to placemat size

Hi.

2011-01-30T11:48:00.000-08:00

Been a while since This blog space called to me. I am having so much fun with the camera and over at Flickr. 365 keeps me shooting daily and this is a good thing. I turned it around on myself last night before he headed out with friends and realized how uncomfortable I can feel in front of the lens. Also, I need to break out the Manfrotto and get a remote shutter click for SP in the future.

A Week of B&W

2011-01-22T13:56:00.000-08:00

It has been quite a week. I decided that I should switch my camera settings to B&W on Sunday and shoot a week of it for my 365. Talk about revelations. Just for a little bit of context, Tim has been to school for photography. Back in the day when people still (gasp) shot film. His camera bag of old holds a medium format Pentax and a spot meter. The camera is all manual and that is what his eye

Write It Out

2011-01-18T16:21:00.000-08:00

It is always wonderful and a bit strange to arrive at a new point with the boys, a place I had hoped we would be someday. That happened this weekend with the start of what I hope will become a weekly tradition and practice, that of Journaling. I recall reading a post over a year ago, cannot remember where. It was about the joy of journaling with small children. At the time the boys were so

Loving Antalya

2011-01-15T18:06:00.000-08:00

I'm in a bit of a love affair right now. With my knitting. Yeah. Always try to keep it racy around here, right? But this friend of mine, one that had taken back seat for some time, has now come to the forefront and I am loving it though my wrists and fingertips are not. It started with this hat designed by MJ. I rarely peruse Ravelry right now, just not enough time. The lack of exposure to

Anew

2011-01-10T20:09:00.000-08:00

That last post was somewhat prompted by the odd heady space Tim and I have been in since the New Year came. I think I have mentioned in a not so specific way that we are thinking of moving. It felt not so specific until this past weekend. Now it feels like a much more real and present prospect, an idea that can become reality. It is not an imminent move, we are not packing any bags quite yet.

Wings (Clipped?)

2011-01-07T17:49:00.000-08:00

Our passports expired December 31, 2010. We had initially planned to renew them but the steep price of 110$ each made it impossible this year. Letting them expire felt like a closure of some other part of our lives together. Locked in the U.S. we are until we can come up with the sum of 320$ to let us out again (once they expire you have to apply anew which costs 160$ now). I remember when we

Rip and Resow

2011-01-03T17:57:00.000-08:00

Unlike many others out there, I do not mind the yearly making of resolutions. I always do better with a list and really, resolutions are just another one of those to me. I tend to make the list for the New Year, casual but with good intentions and then try not to sweat it too much when they do not all happen. Better to make the list and cross of a few then plod along without any change to greet

Christmas Past

2010-12-28T13:52:00.000-08:00

I am feeling a little shocked at the passing of the Holiday. It feels like it flew past this year and there was not much time to process and yet, yet it also felt just right. The Christmas weekend was a whirl of tradition and exhaustion. We spent Thursday night with good friends and family, eating pizza and strolling all the littles up to a ridiculously elaborate Christmas extravaganza of lights

Noel con Havana

2010-12-26T12:08:00.000-08:00

I am not a big fan of the baby infant stage. All that purposeless limb flailing and constant need for head support. They need so much milk and usually their mama is the only one to provide that. Not much to interact with either, all that sleeping then fussing then pooping. They are so much more fun when they learn to roll, sit up, walk. These are the myths I have been telling myself for a few

Everything Will Be Alright

2010-12-24T10:42:00.000-08:00

Kate at Sweet/Salty gives this Reverb prompt : Tell me about one 2010 moment that served as proof that everything is going to be alright. It doesn't need to have been profound. Think a passing serenity that makes you pause in the middle of a blink. Beyond trying to believe. A knowing that's as deep as bones, neverminding the how or the when. My one and only Reverb reply for 2010 :: I am

Almost There

2010-12-20T15:14:00.000-08:00

I have been trying to take it easy on the Holiday making front but as always, I have gone and bit off more than I can chew. It seems like JoAnns is perennially out of the bamboo stuffing I need to finish this and that toy, that I have misplaced my scissors, bobbins and brain on every occasion possible, and oh yeah, that thing called work? It is being terribly pesky and will not let up and let me

House Opened

2010-12-15T21:14:00.000-08:00

We held our annual Open House early this year. My plan was to avoid the nuttiness of house prep plus Christmas countdown by scheduling it early. Last year I was in the midst of cleaning when folks starting showing up but it was still fun. This year I knew I wanted to try to find some time to actually spend with my lovely friends and family. Well, that did happen. A little bit. Sure, 2/3rds of

Giving Time

2010-12-13T16:15:00.000-08:00

The weekend may have held 80 degree temperatures and short sleeve shirts but the spirit of the season was well and truly celebrated by me and mine. Saturday was the meet up of my lovely L.A. knitting friends, we had exchanged Secret Santas with the guidelines being something simple and hand made. These exchanges always make me giddy because 1) they all have amazing taste and 2) making for others

Cookie Maker (get it, Em, get it?)

2010-12-09T16:09:00.000-08:00

Now that the sick has gone, I am more than ready to focus on the upcoming holiday. Yay for recovery and the realization post-ick than my normal level of daily energy is more than enough to get things done. The season of cookie making is upon us and so far this year it has gone quite well. Last year we made sugar cookies, but the recipe was off in some way and less than satisfactory to roll, cut

Weathering It

2010-12-06T20:27:00.000-08:00

You know, you hope and dream that your children will grow to love the same things you do, love the same life you live. And then you see that they do and it makes you feel so very good. I am not sure how many parents embrace the idea that they know how to raise children. It seems in this day there is always some expert offering the latest way to do things or an explanation for why things are as

Thanks.

2010-11-27T23:42:00.000-08:00

Nothing new, but I am so thankful for these boys. Moments like this, when it all seems possible ... Or like this when doll stuffing becomes Santa's beard (the same Santa he shunned just hours earlier. And that I live in a place where one Sunday we can be at the beach and the next Saturday facing the prospect of being snowed in for a day or two. Happy Thanksgiving weekend, folks.

Fruition

2010-11-23T18:18:00.000-08:00

The roses are almost done here, the last of the blooms waning. This was in October when the flower became full and fragrant and caught my eye after a rain. The bush sits there, at the end of the drive, often overlooked but not on this day.This is how I wished I felt right now ... full and drenched in possibility. And then there is this, this image. The trees at the park down the street, full of

They Might be Giants

2010-11-19T09:45:00.000-08:00

It struck me that someday my children will be giants. Some days it seems that they already are.I held my niece yesterday; 2 days old, 3 pounds bigger than Mason on the day he was born. She felt beyond fragile and her miniature limbs were so delicate and unnatural looking to me. And yet there was that part that recalls marveling over the tininess of their nails and joints and veins. I came home to

Serenity Now

2010-11-15T20:16:00.000-08:00

That was always one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes ... George's dad yelling that line at the top of his lungs. Serenity Now !!!!The last month or two have had so little to do with the blog world and so much to do with life and some of the rough turns it can throw at you. I alluded to a court case which thankfully was settled today. I do not want to talk details but I can say we found ourselves

Thankful

2010-11-10T10:26:00.000-08:00

Today I am thankful for ::++ The south moving Sun that brings bright morning light into our South facing bedrooms.++ Remembering to light scented candles to warm the rooms and dispel some of the little boy pee smells that seem to permeate our hall bathroom.++ Snapping away to capture those first few days when their skin is still fragile and glowing and they do nothing more than root, flail, grunt

Fall Here, Fall Where?

2010-11-06T20:09:00.001-07:00

We are having a terribly schizophrenic Fall with temperatures that are bouncing from the 100s to the 50s with not much middle ground. I am not a big fan. I know that the seasons seem hard to seperate in Southern Calfornia but this is getting a bit ridiculous.We tried to feel Fall-ish last week by heading up to Oak Glen, a little foothill enclave of a town where they grow apples and host a few

In Due Time

2010-11-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

I've been taking pictures when I can. Pictures of people. Last month it was a boudoir session with two of my friends. That was fun and by the end we were giddy on wine and blushing a little bit upon review of the last pictures. Not many that I can post up here but this is one of my very favorite ones. The irony? It was a test shot and she has all her clothes on. Never know when you are going to

Hallow'Een

2010-11-02T21:29:00.001-07:00

The boys did not don home made Mama costumes this year. There was no luxury of time for that. I did manage to squeeze in a quick sewing session to make caps for their respective chosen costumes. The Buzz was a hand-me-down from their Auntie Libby and cousins. The Spidey guy came for 1.59 from the thrift store.They spent the month in a frenzy of Creating ... at home, in school, avidly talking

A Month of Me :: No Mas

2010-10-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

Day 20 → Your views on drugs and alcoholThey help. They hurt. It is all determined by the circumstance, the intake, the history, the person. I am voting yes on Prop 19 here in California because it is pot. Not junk or meth. And I like beer. A lot. I thought I would give a nod to the whole 30 day thing.So, uh, I left the 30 day thing way back when because I got a regular (but temp) paying job a

You Can Be a Hero Too!

2010-10-16T18:10:00.000-07:00

So, I spoke of a tutorial on Cape Making and Marnie really wants one so I shall oblige. A note :: These are simple enough but take a rudimentary knowledge of sewing, a sewing machine and an iron and, er, that's about it. I tend towards the picture heavy, so follow along if you please and make your little peeps or yourself something fun for All Hallow's Eve or any day of the week when you need to

A Month of Me :: 15 (But really 14)

2010-10-15T20:54:00.000-07:00

So the prompt read something like "A hero that has let you down" "write them a letter". Jeez. Like any hero needs to hear a letter about their failings. I bet they never asked to be a hero in the first place.Origin:1605–15; back formation from ME heroes (pl.) < L hērōs (sing.), hērōes (pl.) < Gk hḗrōs, hḗrōes I took Latin for four years in high school. This does not make me a hero. Just a

A Month of Me with a Segue

2010-10-12T13:55:00.000-07:00

Day 11 → Something people seem to compliment you the most on.Day 12 → Something you never get compliments on.I am hitting these up combination style because somehow the days just keep flying by and I laugh a little at the idea that I could even try to blog daily. So, 11 :: People seem to like my smile. And my kids. I get multiple compliments on both. Which is really nice. The kids more than the

We Interrupt the Broadcast ...

2010-10-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

Gawd, eight days in and I am thoroughly sick of speaking about myself. It is making me feel all itchy and stuff. I am taking a break to talk about something that I like more than this Month of me. And that would be Heather Ross.I have a pretty solid crush on the woman, her fabric and her fabulous-ness. She has long been my favorite fabric designer, her patterns hold so much whimsy and life. I

A Month of Me :: Eight

2010-10-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

Someone who made your life hell, or treated you like shit.I had to reach waaaaaay back for this one. It totally sounds trivial even to myself. But the only folks I could come up with for this were the other girls in my 1st grade class at my Catholic school. And who does not have a memory like that lurking somewhere back in their past?I was kinda' funny looking as a kid and also was cursed with a

A Month of Me :: Seven

2010-10-07T13:08:00.000-07:00

Someone who has made your life worth living for.Makes me feel so good to say there is not Some One ... but a whole slew of Some Ones. All of them family in some way or another. All of them blessings and challenges.

A Month of Me :: Five/Six

2010-10-05T15:16:00.000-07:00

Something you hope to do in your life.I want to do this LIST. Maybe not everything on it will happen, but I imagine that many many things can and will. It is not a life list, rather it was generated during an online course that I took last January called Mondo Beyondo. It is about dreaming wild and free and believing in the potential and possibility of this Life we Live.I made bold the things

A Month of Me :: Four

2010-10-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

Something you have to forgive someone for.This one was both hard and easy. I say that because I had to think really hard about the above prompt. And then it became easy when I realized there is no one out there that needs my forgiveness.I don't think this is because I bring any less wrongs unto myself in my contacts with other people. Of course, I have been hurt or offended or felt insulted or

30 Days of Me :: Three

2010-10-02T11:54:00.000-07:00

Something you have to forgive yourself for.My PPD. Post partum depression. And not for the actual PPD, but for the way I hid it and denied the help and waited too long to seek help. That is the hard part to forgive.I am a medical professional. I know the signs of clinical depression, etc. I was a pysch major before PT school. I have been through Panic Disorder and meds. And I find it difficult

30 Days of Me :: Two

2010-10-01T19:56:00.000-07:00

Something you love about yourself.Buildings and bridgesare made to bend in the windto withstand the world,that's what it takesAll that steel and stoneis no match for the air, my friendwhat doesn't bend breakswhat doesn't bend breaksAni DifrancoHands down, my flexibility. Both physically and in other ways. As a dancer, flexibility is key. It lets you get there. To that place, that deep and open

A Month of Me

2010-10-01T16:40:00.000-07:00

It is a little much, I know, but I am declaring October the Month of Me. Is it because I have little to no blog inspiration lately? Because it is my birthday month? Because I am totally into talking about myself (that was blogging's origin, right?). Probably all of the above. But it is also intriguing to think about writing more than just the old 100 things list. You can find the 30 Days of Truth

Escape from Hades

2010-09-28T18:05:00.000-07:00

What to do when temperatures reach past the triple digit mark and rocket past 110? Get the Hell out of Dodge.We spent Saturday in Dana Point at our new favorite spot aptly called Baby Beach. Super sheltered and waveless, lots of grass and shade, ice cream and clean sand and blissfully cool ocean. It was the right place to be. Another plus ... I only saw about 4 moms with "Banging post-baby beach

Transitions

2010-09-22T20:05:00.000-07:00

Another season passes by, I am left wondering when it happened. The Summer that was is now gone and I realize I should change my header from iris to fallen leaf ...I came home from work today early, no patients to be had, a slump of epic proportions hitting at just the wrong time. It was cloudy all day, the marine layer pressing into the Foothills, letting in just enough light to dispel gloom and

Stitch Stitch Stitch

2010-09-20T19:07:00.000-07:00

Lately, I feel a bit like the only things I can accomplish are those of the simplest nature. Twisty complicated patterns have not called me for some time and I find myself most comfortable when the making I am making is centered around simple, clean, simple, small .... simple.There is something about rounds of st-st that soothe the hand and mind without requiring conscious thought, conscious

Just Say NO.

2010-09-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

Last week my Mom found a great library book for the boys titled NO DAVID! It is about a little boy that hears a litany of NOS! from his Mama for his every action and the boys love it to bits. They insist that we read through the scenes page after page while they inform us of every wrong David is doing, all the things he does that gets him into big trouble. They tell me David should not come over

Just Us

2010-09-16T12:32:00.000-07:00

Black and white makes life look so freaking beautiful.

Ah, Youth

2010-09-12T17:30:00.000-07:00

You know, sometimes you see pictures of yourself and you see those limbs that used to bend and flex so loosely, the same limbs you see on your own children now and you wonder that your own body could have ever been that free, that open.:::::::::::::::::::::And then you wake up every morning feeling like you have a slight hangover and your feet hit the earth and you cry out a little in pain as you

When in Doubt... Read.

2010-09-07T18:43:00.001-07:00

Life has just been firing too rapidly at us to make blogging about it feasible. And due to Life I have not made anything except canned goods and dinners, have not breathed deeply for a few weeks, have yet to establish an equilibrium in this day to day of mine. Tim and I were joking that I am going through my mid 30 crisis ... only half joking.In response, all I want to do is read. Granted,

If Walls Could Talk

2010-08-29T20:00:00.000-07:00

If our living room walls could talk they would tell you of the eternal jumble of stuff, carefully edited from evidence with framing and shallow depth of field. A jumble that re-emerges moments after it is cleared; an onus like Sisyphus rolling his ball.If my newly declared *office* walls could talk they would tell you how happy they are with a generously donated desk, large enough to house all

Summer Eating 2010

2010-08-27T19:17:00.000-07:00

The late summer heating slamming us is sapping my will to do a lot of things. I am not quite done with New York (truth is I will never be done with NY) but I am taking a little break from that vein of posts. I am trying to focus on the things that I am actually doing, which is really not much. As the heat churns on I find no impetus to knit or craft or clean (or work, ooooh, it is hot in some of

The Year of Pennies and Yarns

2010-08-23T16:31:00.001-07:00

Traditional 7 Year Marriage Gifts :: Copper and Wool. Appropriate.Today marks 7 years since the day we were married. 7 years sounds odd, in truth we are fast approaching 16 in total. But, man, that weekend 7 years ago was just spectacular.This weekend we sat down together and rifled through years of photos and old letters and laughed at the youth and abandon with which we once lived. The years

Brooklyn Love

2010-08-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

It would be remiss of me not to speak of Brooklyn as a huge part of this trip. It is where I stayed for the week, where a lot of good things happened and where I found sanctuary when the wailing rush of Manhattan got to me.The neighborhood where I stayed felt like an old song that I know how to sing. Not yet gentrified with just a smattering of wine bars and whole food restaurants mixed in with

The Sound of The City

2010-08-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

You would think from all the previous posts that my trip to NYC was all about Blogher. It really wasn't, just 3 of 7 days were spent traveling to and from the Hilton in the City. It was the traveling that my trip was really about. That and the sounds of the City.It all started on the plane ride out when two funky cool kids sat down next to me for the cross country flight. I noticed him on his

Words ARE Power

2010-08-13T07:17:00.000-07:00

I mentioned that I had an opportunity to meet Karen Walrond. She photoblogs at Chookooloonks and uses it for much more than photos. I first found her because of Andrea Scher from Superhero Journal. Andrea is my personal dreaming Muse, an example of a person dreaming in action and sharing it every step of the way. I love this group of blogging women for their ability to harness and share their

Re-entry

2010-08-12T13:35:00.000-07:00

When I arrived home last night my boys were asleep. I crawled into the queen size bed that they share and studied their sleeping forms, laying in abandon in that sweet limp state. They had arms intertwined and heads on the same pillow and I sighed at the deliciousness. I breathed in the air of home and settled.This week has brought about a profound change to my life and this cannot be denied. As

Blogher 2010 :: The Amiee Experience

2010-08-10T05:08:00.000-07:00

So, I just sat down to start writing my Blogher recap post along with thousands of other women who attended the event this weekend. And I realized I can pull it all into one sentence :: Blogher is what you make it. Blogher is whatever you are willing to let it be. (Lied, two sentences).I was nervous as hell going in, I am not going to lie. But before the conference I had already decided the why

On my Way

2010-08-04T12:24:00.000-07:00

Sitting here at LAX after the quick and painless check in. The boys and Tim accompanied me and we parked at top level to watch the huge planes take off all the better. TSA was easy, they let me through with gobs of lotion and hair products and wickedly sharp scissors.And I am excited but for now just want to put up a picture of them....Carry on? Maybe I could have tried for the one, but they

My Swag

2010-08-02T07:03:00.001-07:00

So, I usually make things in anticipation of a big event, we know this. I make things for my kids and their birthdays, my family members at Christmas, my beloved friends and their offspring. I figured that Blogher should be no exception and now when people ask me what my blog is about I can just show them.Instead of posting about what I am going to wear (I mean, I already showed you the shoes)

Upward Growth

2010-07-30T07:10:00.000-07:00

This is the view from our kitchen table. I literally drink it in most mornings as I sit with a cup of coffee. Some mornings are quieter than others, today was quiet and I took a little walk out to see how the growing of things are going. I love looking for new flowers and fruits. The vines give me special pleasure because I love those curly shoots they send out, seeking a hold on any willing bit.

Just right now...

2010-07-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

Today is a new day and I did not want to leave that post hanging there. It felt good to write it out and those feelings are still all there on this day but somehow they all feel lighter. Your comments and words of support made it all feel lighter, eased some of the heaviness I was feeling. So, I want to say thank you for that, my friends.It also helped that after work I collapsed on the bed with

Sometimes....

2010-07-27T09:37:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just can't.I can't find the time to blog, much less breathe.I can't finish anything correctly, not my paperwork or my cooking of dinner or even a conversation.I can't figure out if my boss has some secret agenda, whether my kids are going to be okay or where the line between work me and home me falls.I can't see the end of it, the solution, the fun in a situation and it all starts to