Random Saturday (Now on Sunday!), or, Phew!

I made it.  The week of solo parenting is over, Rhys is home and being run ragged by short people, and I actually got to sleep until 9 (NINE) am this morning.  It's a freakin' miracle.

I thought I had done so very well.  I was all, "this isn't so bad, I can do this," which is good because this is the first of quite a few trips over the next few weeks, and this is not the only one that will last a week.  I had done laundry.  The kitchen was pretty much under control.  The children were fed, bathed, and brushed, and had even suddenly improved their bedtime behavior significantly.  I met my work deadlines, picked the kids up from school on time (let's not talk too much about when I dropped them off) and even invoiced for some freelance work.  I blogged.  I answered email.  Hey, I did some bulk fleece washing.  I called a contractor.  (More on that later.)  I was a mommy-management-maniac.  I rocked.

Thing is, I'm not exactly the best with the phone.  I'm not afraid of it, it's just not my favorite form of communication.  And I hate listening to voice mail when I'm solo with the kids because it's always too late to call people back, and then I have to remember the next day, and have the number at work, and yadda yadda yadda.

Yeah, I forgot to listen to voice mail.  All freakin week.  I didn't even listen to voice mail when we got back from Rhinebeck, and then I didn't listen to it all week, and, well, um, whoops.  It could have been much worse--the worst was that my parents wanted to meet us at Rhinebeck (though I think it wouldn't have worked out anyway), and that my hairdresser wanted to reschedule.  I feel terrible about the hairdresser, but I have called her and apologized profusely, and we will be rescheduling and hopefully it's all okay.

But, yeah, maybe my supermom routine needs a little work.

Anyway, I survived.  Thanks to everyone who was expressed concern about me last week.  Don't worry, I won't be giving away all my wool, I just needed to step back for a minute and remember that wool is the part of my life that I need to protect a little, and hold separate from all the craziness.  And I think I need to channel Margene and really enjoy the process and not think too much about the product.  In the end, that's where the high comes from, at least for me.

But yes, this is Random Wednesday (now, randomly, written on Saturday! Posted on Sunday!), so, without further ado:

·       So I'm knitting along on Kepler, and I gotta tell you that if you're dissatisfied with your waist measurement to begin with, knitting a cabled band that goes around it is not a particularly good way to improve your attitude.  It's going agonizingly slowly, and I have to tell you that I am shocked at how much fabric it takes to circumnavigate my gut.  I'm two thirds of the way around now.  I'm enjoying the cable, and i know when I get to the stockinette part I won't believe how fast it goes, but man, there's a lot of me to go around.

·       Also that baby shower is tomorrow, and the evil crocheted hat proceeds with infinite slowness.  It should be done, however, I will now share with you exactly how stupid I really am.  The pattern, in my defense, is not exactly clear.  It says "work until piece measures 14"."  And I'm like, huh, that's a big hat.  Because I'm thinking diameter, not circumference.  Which I know is idiotic, and you know, the worst part is that I crocheted away (in single crochet), knowing the hat was going to be huge but thinking that there was some weird crochet construction thing going on that I didn't understand.  In my defense, I didn't actually get to 14" before I came to my senses.  I probably ripped back 10 rounds, and the hat will be a little on the big side but I prefer big to small.  But I'm still crocheting my little heart out.  And I'm not particularly pleased about it.

·       I haven't yet used my combs because I don't have a good place to clamp them.  I did rough comb a little of the silver romney, but it's a little too short and soft for English combing, so I decided to try to drum card it.  I really do have to say that I love my drum carder and I'm so grateful to Sara for getting it for me.  I spun a sample of it last night.  I don't know what it wants to be yet, but I'm going to wait a bit and I bet it will tell me.  Partly I think it's competing with Motley for the role of "gray cabled sweater du jour" and I'm not starting another one until I finish Kepler.  But at least I have some sense of this wool's plans for me.  And that makes me feel better.  It might find its way into a cabled hat or two before then.  We have made peace.

·       So, Rhinebeck.  I've been feeling vaguely guilty about the whole blogging Rhinebeck thing all week.  First of all, I think I'm incapable of writing a post that will do justice to the experience, and second of all, so many people have been so creative, so descriptive, so thorough, that I am going to take the totally easy way out and refer you to them.  Specifically:

• Cassie has the most thorough and excellent link-fest and has been her usual conscientious and thoughtful self in describing a wonderful weekend.  It's an act I couldn't begin to try to follow. (Also, dude, happy blogiversary!)

• Juno did a wonderful job of explaining the fibery fabulousity of the whole thing.  I barely saw either of them when I was there, but, you know, what they said.

• Laurie explains it all in three parts, and again with someone I didn’t see enough of, I can say “what she said.”

• Jo and Justine were kind enough to stay in our cramped room and eat pizza while a blogger party raged in the lobby, as Sara and I were beholden to short people sleeping.  We sent the non-fibery spouses out for payment for daytime babysitting dinner and they came back and collected Justine’s partner Patrick, whose presence next year is apparently the deal-closer for our kid-chasing posse next year.  Apparently he entertained mightily, and without even telling the story about the time he was a pirate.  A very good time, but I regret not having two more days—the weekend was too short and I felt like my interactions with people who feel like good friends—were too fleeting.  Any chance they’ll make it into a week-long festival?  Yeah, I didn’t think so.

• Finally, and incomparably, Katy has set the weekend to the music of the ‘80s.  What more can really be said, given the existence of such a feat?  I ask you.

• Oh, Secret Pal!  I’ve been meaning to say thank you to my incredibly sweet Secret Pal who sent an absolutely adorable “Knitter Bear,” a teddy bear with knitting needles and yarn and all.  The kids think it’s the coolest thing ever, and they also loved the maple syrup lollipops.  I’m telling you, this Secret Pal thing is working out pretty well for them.  I did steal back the fabulous felted mini-bag my SP5, Isela, made for me, and it now protects my camera from the elements.

• So remember I mentioned calling a contractor?  Yeah, because I definitely don’t have enough going on, but I’ve reached the point with the living room carpet that I can’t stand to be in the room with it anymore.  We’ve had it cleaned a hundred times, but it’s well past any real hope.  We’re also planning an addition on the house, so we don’t want to do any major work that will be undone when we, I don’t know, knock down, in whole or in part, three of the four walls in the room.  But there’s this weird little hallway and this TINY doorway to the living room that makes the whole space seem cramped, so tomorrow, and by that I mean the day after today, as in Monday, the contractors are coming bright and early to widen the doorway and rip up the carpet.  So I’ve spent the weekend packing up bookshelves and throwing away clutter (and oh but there is clutter) so that they can actually get to the carpet.  The hardwood underneath needs refinishing, but I figure a cheap used oriental rug on ebay and, hey, I might even be able to stand being in my own house.  It’s been a lot of work, but I’m really relieved to know we’re getting rid of this health hazard on my living room floor.

• So, depending on how this whole construction, destruction, etc. thing goes, I may actually be willing to allow non-family members into my home in the near future.  Woot!  On that note, if you are planning to head to the Fiber Twist next weekend (a new, small, but bound-to-be-great festival about 20 miles from me), let me know.  If the place is somewhat put back together, I might be having coffee…or beer…at some point during the day.  Cajz, of course, but like I said, let me know if you’re coming this-a-way.

So I’m finishing this post on Sunday, having just returned from the baby shower at which I gifted the hat.  I forgot to photograph it before giving it, but I see the recipient every week and I’ll ask her to bring it so I can take a picture.  It’s a crocheted brown hat (DB baby cashmerino) with a stem at the top, and two little crocheted oak leaves hanging from the stem.  The oak leaves are handspun from a lovely autumn colorway in merino-tencel from The Sheep Shed.  I was a little worried that people would look at the oak leaves and say “why did she put these weird lizards on the hat?” but people do seem to have gotten the whole acorn idea.  The recipient cried.  I mean the mom, the baby hasn’t started crying yet, but I fully expect him to cry when he wears it.  Anyway, it’s always fun to make hormonally vulnerable women bawl their eyes out.  Good times.

Comments

[Bethany]

I love your Random Wednesdays... whenever they arrive :)

[Samantha]

As someone who is knitting Samus and has 6 repeats to go I understand exactly what you are talking about! Beautiful cabled bit though :-)

[Isela]

I enjoy your Random Wednesdays--no matter which day they ended up being--so much fun.

I am planning to make Kepler too and I did measure my waist a couple of weeks ago and I am afraid it put me off from making it for a few months--maybe if I exercise my butt off, I can use less yarn and finish it sooner...there is a motivation tactic :), hahahaha.

[Dena Childs]

I'm hoping to make it to the Fiber Twist—but between the radio show, soccer, reindeer fitting, birthday party, and setting the clocks back :), I'm still a maybe. But with my husband being away this weekend (for a geek-coaster thing no less) I have some leverage.

[maryellen]

hey, I single parent frequently because of bussiness trips. And If I keep the kids alive well fed and in resonable good spirts I've gone way beyond the call of motherhood. Youd did a great job. Screw the voice mail

[Cara]

Hey - I'm up for making anyone cry (in the good way.) Man or woman. (Just ask my husband.)

I'm still lamenting I never got to meet the whole family at Rhinebeck, but I understand. Next time! (Oh and the hug was great - did I tell you that?)

[PumpkinMama]

If, while caring for two small children by yourself for one week, all that you forgot was to check voice mail, you most certainly are worthy of the "mommy-management-maniac" and you did, indeed, ROCK. I can't do that and I only have one terror to watch.

Glad you're feeling back on track with the wool - its hard not to let the crazies get to our "sacred spaces" such as our knitting, etc. We all need a little wake up call at those times telling us that this is supposed to be fun.

[Rachel H]

Sorry - lemme get this straight: you have two short people in your home, and you got to sleep in till 9? NINE??? I've only got one, and he has never, ever, for any reason let me sleep past 7:15 on a weekend!

[CarolineF]

I have a shopping list pad with a header that says, "If the kids are still alive at the end of the day, I've done my job."

So how did you get them to improve their bedtime behavior? seven to eight every night is hell hour at our house.

[CarolineF]

I have a shopping list pad with a header that says, "If the kids are still alive at the end of the day, I've done my job."

So how did you get them to improve their bedtime behavior? seven to eight every night is hell hour at our house.

[Kat with a K]

Ooh, I had missed Kepler somehow... gorgeous. But perhaps I should wait until I lose a bit more weight. Hmm. I think there should be a knit-more-eat-less diet. Then I could finish some of the ridiculous amount of WIPs AND be able to make smaller sweaters. Hmmmm.

I will not be able to make it to the Fiber Twist, but I am vaguely planning a day trip to your general vicinity at, um, some point, and I'd love to meet up, at your place or somewhere else. (Would your kids be interested in the Eric Carle museum? That's on my places-to-go list.) Anyway. Time to stop rambling and get back to work, I suppose.

[Carole]

You already know I'm heading up there on Saturday and I'll have my friend, Blogless Sharon, in tow. If the only thing that slipped through the cracks this week was the voicemail, well, dude, that ain't so bad. As long as you never ignore my voicemails, you're doing okay, lol.
And, can I just tell you? I drum carded on Friday and I'm loving it. I need a drum carder. Right away. Any suggestions?!?

[Sneaksleep]

I *never* remember to check our answering machine at home. I think I have a mental block that it even exists. (Nevermind the fact that it's my voice on the recording). The only reason I check my cell voicemail is because it might be Taz having an emergency. And as for the Kepler, I don't think your circumference looks that bad at all!

[juno]

One of the menay reason I will not be making that sweater. I just can't take the concrete reality of my circumference. Although, my swiss neighbor makes me do my measurements in cm as I have no emotional connection to them...it really helps with the detachment.

Re: Ebay rug - ask Julia about how she got moths and have that bad boy treated before you lay it down, 'kay?

[JoVE]

It wouldn't be the length of time knitting that band for me. I was put off Keplar by the fact that that band will just draw attention to my waist and make it look bigger. I actually have a waist so try to knit things that come in a bit there to remind people that a size 18/20 can be shapely.

Having seen it in person, I don't think your waist measurement is a problem.

[--Deb]

I think you definitely rocked this week if all you forgot was voicemail! We have an answering machine, which we all usually remember to check, but there's also voicemail from the phone company that never gets checked and so those messages tend to sit until somebody picks up the phone and hears that little "you have messages" chime . . . I hate that! Anyway, you definitely get credit for Manic Mommy Mode!

[Laura J]

I am wanting to make Kepler and I am not looking forward to that part either. You deserve warmth. And more than that if you are entertaining contractors. My thoughts are with all of you.

[Lee Ann]

I decided not to knit Kepler because I preferred to draw attention to the vertical, not the horizontal...but your horizontal ain't looking so colossal, there, lady...and the cabling is gorgeous.

I hate checking voicemail, but I love the phone. My husband never, ever checks (I don't think he actually knows how) and doesn't answer it either, which is the entire reason we have cellphones. He'll actually answer his cellphone. Sigh.

[Cassie]

Anyone with small twins who is knitting a sweater from handspun gets my vote for supermom. Voicemail? Meh.

[secret pal]

I'm glad you liked the presents. I was hoping the lolli pops were ok to send them. There are suger houses at all of the bigger fairs and I couldnt resist. The hand cream has become my fast favorite not to greasy and all natural. I didnt know what your favorite smell was so I guessed. Have a good week.

[Katy]

I second Pumpkinmama and the others. If all you "forgot" was the voice mail--well, what's the problem? And amidst all the single parenting you found time to deal with a contractor? Amazing!
I'm embarrassed to admit that I've never had to have my kids alone (without my partner or my parents) for more than a day...I don't know how I would make it for a week. ;)

[Jenny in NC]

Um, ahem, paging supermom... I don't check my voicemail on a regular week. I think you should take the band from Kepler and put it up around your chest instead. I mean, if you're gonna accentuate something, well, people wouldn't be able to tell if you were cold with that cable pattern. Great job this week!

[margene]

You did a great job! No one can be 'perfect' but you came close. It's all the process of life and you did it one step at a time just as you do your knitting.

[Kathy]

Voicemail. Blech. I am headed out there on Saturday too.