At the end of every year I like to take a minute to sit and think about the possibilities of the next year. Think about it, we really never know what is going to happen in our lives. Sometimes we dream so big and nothing really happens. And other times our dreams are more than fulfilled. I know what I want to happen in my life, but I wonder what will really happen? The uncertainty of it all is kind of scary, but I think it’s mostly exciting. Starting a new year is like starting out fresh, anything can happen and anything is possible. And to top it all off, THINK OF HOW MUCH KNITTING I’M GOING TO GET DONE IN A WHOLE YEAR!!!

Have a happy 2005, I pray that everybodys life is full of peace.

This morning when I was headed to the office, it was really foggy outside. We don’t get fog here very often, but it always reminds me of when we were in Germany.
There was a slight breeze and the frost was blowing off the trees. As the frost sprinkled down on me it reflected the sunlight like millions of tiny sun rays. I felt like I was standing in a glitter cloud. What a rare, perfect moment. I wish I could have taken a picture.

So, yesterday we went to Taco Bell to partake in a delicious Fajita Grilled Stuffed Burrito (mmmm, Fajitas!). While waiting in line for our food, I observed a family filling their drinks. I was noticing the mom corralling the four children thinking that she seemed so sane (not to mention the children well behaved) for having raised four children. I was thinking of the things I would ask her about raising four children (since I can’t seem to be sane raising my two) when her husband walked up. He was wearing maroon sweat pants, a maroon, but not the same maroon, long sleeved shirt. Over his shirt he had strapped to his waist a brown leather belt. Attached to the belt was his cell phone. Let me repeat this in case you don’t quite have the mental picture. Sweat pants. Long sleeved shirt. Leather belt. Cell phone. I guess that raising four kids did affect someone in that family, he was the one that got all the crazy. Seriously, who in their right mind….?

I took a moment to offer a silent prayer (more like a desperate plea) that Jim will never get so crazy that he would think of going into public looking like that. Wait, not just in public, but ever. EVER. See, in a family you need to share the mental strain of raising kids, therefore I will gladly be a little crazy to rescue my husband from a fate worse than death, a fate of sweat pants and belted on cell phones.

It is so easy for me to focus on things in my life that are so hard. I wanted to take today to focus on the things that make my life so great.

I can’t even imagine how my life would be without my husband. Every time I start to think about what would happen if he died, I start to freak out (there goes the overactive imagination again!). Sometimes I’m amazed at how perfect we fit together, that we’re the only one’s who get each others cheesy jokes (trust me they’re cheesy), that he knows me so well that it can be scary, like we read each others thoughts. When I think about my relationship with Jim, I know that God cares about my life and that he gave me the perfect person for me.

My kids. The major source of my frequent frustration. They really are great kids. Eden is so bright. She says the absolute funniest things. She calls everyone “honey” (thanks grammy) and not a moment goes by that she’s not talking or singing a song, except for when I try to get her to talk on the phone, then she’s as silent as can be.

Honor is the stinkiest kid! I always said that I wanted a kid like Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes and I think I got it. It doesn’t matter how hard we try, he is always playing in the toilet! ALWAYS. I don’t know how the kid does it. But he is really sweet. He loves me so much and is always coming up to me to give me hugs, even if I don’t nurse him anymore.

Jennaniah. Really this whole “raising” a teenager experience has made me wonder how in the world my mom was able to not kill me. But she is a great kid for being 16 and I really enjoy having her here. I’m so thankful that we have been able to provide a healthy place for her to live. What is life about if you can’t help people who need it. I’m glad that we are able.

I’m thankful for my house and that as of 5pm today we will have all our debt consolidated into just the house payment.
I’m thankful that we have a car that works.
I’m thankful that I’m not pregnant.
I’m thankful that Jim is able to do what he loves and can still support our family and allow me to stay home to take care of our children.
And finally and possibly most important, I’m thankful for yarn. Really I am.

I know that about 200 of you visit this website each day and I want to know what you’re thankful for. You can’t hide, I know you’re out there. Happy Thanksgiving!

I’ve decided to wean Honor. It’s time. But he sure doesn’t think so. I swear, the kid would nurse 5, 6 times a day if I let him! So far he has gone 24 hours without nursing and he’s not freaking out too much. I’m hoping and praying that I will be like my cousin and drop 30 pounds after I quit nursing. It’s a long shot, but hey, it’s worth hoping for!

Also, Honor’s tooth finally popped through. For the past TWO MONTHS his upper pre molar has been trying to come in. It has been super swollen and here’s the gross part: The gum was not only swollen but black. Black. yuck. I took him to the doctor and he thought it was fine. And then he went in a few weeks later for his check up with our regular doctor and he thought that it would probably be ok too. Finally, two weeks ago, I took him into the dentist, who took one look at it and said it was fine. It didn’t look fine to me. But it turns out that it was, indeed, fine. Thank God. I envisioned Honor needing to have major mouth surgery. (We all know that my imagination gets a little overactive when it comes to worring about my kids.)

Hopefully, now, I’ll have a much happier little kid. Of course I did take his boobs away from him, but I think eventually he will forgive me. I swear! Boys and their boobs!

I can’t believe it has taken me this long to figure out that if I let the cat in I can get at least 30 minutes with out somebody coming up to me and holding a box of raisins saying “Uh, Uh”. How did I not figure this out before? Think of the peace I could have been enjoying? The kids are in love with the little animal, although I don’t think the feeling is mutual. He’d rather have nothing, at all, to do with them (but isn’t that typical cat behavior anyway?)

When I think of the way Eden says cat (tat), I’m reminded of a story my Aunt tells. She was visiting a friends house one day with my then small cousins. David, the youngest, was under 2 years old. He was really enjoying playing with the cats when he went up to the lady and said, “I wike your titties.” There was a moment of stunned silence before my Aunt jumped in and said, “Your CATS, your CATS, he likes your CATS!”

Because I’ve discovered the joys of the cat, Honor has learned another word. Now he says “Kitty” to add to his massive vocabulary. Yes he’s learning at an exponential rate. He now says “Dog” and “Kitty”. THATS IT. We’re going to have to get more animals if we want him to keep talking.

edit 11/15: Last night we let the Kitty sleep in the house because it was so cold. I thought Eden would really like having him sleep in her bed, so I put him in there. She woke up some time in the night and came into our room to excitedly tell me that the kitty was in her bed. Some time later I woke up to the suffocating smell of kitty poop. I tracked it to our closet and let me tell you, the kitty poop gods smiled on me last night. The cat had diarrhaea, BUT he managed to poop right on an empty Old Navy bag sitting on our closet floor. Nothing AT ALL got on the carpet. Such luck!

Needless to say, the cat doesn’t get to sleep in any more.

A little update on what I’m working on. The Frida Poncho is coming slowly but surely. I’ve got about 7 more rows until I’m finished with the first panel.

I’ve started on another dooce scarf and it’s coming along.

I’ve also got on the back burner this great scarf.

I’ve received some interest in my knitting prices, so I decided to go ahead and price everything. This is a trial run as far as prices go, so bear with me. I don’t want to kill myself for this, but I also don’t want it to be too expensive. Just keep in mind that a lot of these products are wool and they are hand made. :)

You can find my prices and knitted work on the pretending sanity knits page.

I’ve been really busy buliding a website for the local yarn store (yay trade!) so I think it will be awhile before I get a shopping cart set up with my knitted goods for sale.
I’ve had a few people email me who were interested and I’ve bid out those scarves on a case by case basis. So if anyone else is interested in buying some of my knitting, just send me an email. I hope to have the shopping cart up by the beginning of the year.

Check out these Ugg booties. I’m going to knit some for Eden, they will be perfect for slippers.
I found this pattern via Action Hero Knitting

On the kid front, I think that Eden is finished with her naps. Today she took a fabulous nap, but right now it is 10:53pm and she is awake. And not only awake, but dancing around the house singing a song. (Speaking of Eden’s imagination, today she decided that she and Honor were going to take a trip to the “arn” store. I’m so proud.) It’s a wonder she didn’t wake Honor up; the little punk turned the light on in their room! It just seems like two years old is too young to cut out naps. (And mom I know what you’re thinking. I do not deserve this. It’s not my fault that I didn’t/don’t like naps.) I will continue to make her lay down for at least an hour a day. I need at least an hour of quiet so I don’t loose my mind.

Today was the first Saturday in a long time that it hasn’t rained, so Jim (and Eden) took the opportunity to rake leaves. Being the two year old that she is, Eden had to help. (For those of you who don’t have the pleasure of having a two year old, I’ll enlighten you on their activities. There are two things that a two year old does and you can never know which one to expect. They can either be throwing a fit or wanting to “help”. That’s it. I can’t even tell you which is worse.)

Eden had a hard time figuring out that the leaves were supposed to go in the street, not on the lawn. They were going in the street because our city actually does something cool for it’s residents. All fall long we have a leaf pick up. I can’t imagine what a pain it would be to have to bag all the leaves.