Monthly Archives: January 2012

Yarn Along – ribbed scarf

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I learned to bind off this week which finished the ribbed scarf I began shortly before Christmas.  This is the first knitting project I have actually completed so I am pretty stoked. The first third of the effort was complicated by incomplete stitches and a nerve wracking needle pull by a certain 6yo.

Those bumps have been smoothed out and the challenge for the rest of the scarf was to pay attention.  There are a number of little knobby errors where I purled when I should have knit.  I have no idea how moms of many manage complicated patterns requiring careful counts!  I guess I would have to have a better attention span or knit when they are asleep.  But that is when I edit <g>

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My reading time is still spent meandering through The Coming of the Monster.  I read slowly – rather on purpose.  Especially with the final book of the series I am dragging my feet to make it last.  What will I do when the Masterful Monk is gone from my days?  Of course good characters are never really completely gone from our thoughts, are they? 

In other reads, Aidan picked up HG Wells' War of the Worlds.  I picked it up for a few pages and wistfully considered reading that too, much like I pulled Jane Eyre off the shelf, which caught Alannah's eye.  She still has it. 

I am rereading The Book of Kindness in small chunks as a devotional. It is a convicting read which really deserves annual consideration. Oh to embody those ideals….

 

more great yarns at Ginny's

Day(in the life)book

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One day last fall I kept the iphone with me as we moved from one thing to another.  I had great plans for Instagram after seeing Rebecca's work but mine was less than inspiring and my connection is so poor it took forEVER to move images.  Still, it made for a virtual time capsule of our life right then.  Life hit and I never did publish it but when we transferred alllllllll our images to an external drive this weekend they surfaced again.

It was a very full day, with Allen and Alannah in the States. I hit the ground running and kept it up til bedtime.  We had a few weeks like this before I was flattened by the hospitalization (totally unrelated) and let me tell you, I wished for nothing more than to be back at it again. 

The day started, like many days, with Abbie climbing into the bed at the crack of dawn. Perennial light sleeper, that one.  Note to self, clear the side table….

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I think we had chocolate chip pancakes, though we had never had them before nor since.  They were amazed lol. We try to do something fun and out of the ordinary when Dad is traveling. 

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'course there are still dishes, pretty ordinary, but more fun when your mom peeks out of the dishwasher maybe <g>

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treadmill time

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The neighbor girls came over and if I remember right that was the day we emptied the utensil drawer and canned food shelves and they stocked the play kitchen for an hour. 

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Lunch and prep for extra-curric's

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piano

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Mailbox run

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Library

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Football practice – yes, next to the baseball diamond.  But none of ours have ever played baseball.  True story.  Ok, one season of T-ball for one of the older boys in like 1992 which didn't end well when he ran the wrong way around the diamond. ; ) 

and yes, we had a wardrobe change at some pt.  I think it had to do with the Minnie Mouse sippy cup and falling asleep in the car.  The dress didn't make it through the day but it looks like Minnie did…

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Movies aka "reward for being really good when Dad is gone"

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Back home, with the Audio Bible.  Got the New Testament 'read' last year. 

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walk the dogs

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dinner

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"Bed-night" stories. 

There you have it.  A very ordinary day in the life. 

Little People Lately

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We have settled back into relative calm this week.  There have been a string of days full of just regular everyday-ness for the little people.  They are unwinding and slipping back into their groove.  

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Since I have had some catching up to do to get back into my groove, they have been playing together and generally keeping busy. This is only mostly productive for me because I am easily distracted by the sun falling across little faces or a hearty belly laugh.  I want to bottle this. : ) 

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pieces

wii

wii

We woke to sun today so Allen packed up the boys (ours and some neighbor kids as well) and went for run/bike.  He runs, they ride.  Then he came back and exchanged them for the little girls who ran errands and went for ice cream cones while we finished packing up the Christmas stuff.  

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My house doesn't look quite as tidy as their house does, but it's closer than it was this morning.  I am rewarding myself by sitting down to bind off the scarf I finished this week.  Probably after a few more chapters of The Matchlock Gun. They are dying to know if the French make it into the valley. <g> 

I hope your weekend is warm and bright. 

keep peace in your soul

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I have loved this poem since I was a child and it hung in my grandparents' home. I would like it better with "whatever you conceive him to be" edited, for that nearly implies that God is a human construct, or at least relative to man's perception.  He is not.  

Without that phrase, however, it clearly conveys my modus operandi. The goal, anyway.  There is a great deal of user error in the playing out of it.

desiderata 

trier cathedral

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.

Take kindly to the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann c.1920

 

 

Eating Out(side)

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Normally we travel cheap.  They way this shakes down typically is that we pick a destination within a few hours of home, surf online and print out the history of the sites we will see, and pack lunches.  We make a day of it and see all we can in that time.  The reward for long car rides and trekking up and down cobblestones and in and out of churches is a treat from an outdoor vendor or bakery late the day. 

Eating out lately….

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Coffee

chneeballen
heidelberg

 

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Some kind of deadly deep fried cake fries from the "sucre" stand in Luxembourg.

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Grillwurst, also known as why they prefer to travel on any day besides Fridays. 

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You would not believe all the things you can adhere to a pretzel – nuts, frosting, sprinkles, cheese, meat pieces…..

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berliner
Ahhhh the beloved Berliner which our German teacher pronounces "Bay-LEEN-uh"  Brendan just calls it good. 

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koln
If you have a whole bunch of boys you may know why I have to snap these signs wherever we go.  I think I have mentioned before how easily amused this bunch is. <g>  

Pardon our potty talk. 

Daybook

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FOR TODAY

Outside my window… It has been gray and misty most days.  The rain has come down in a fine spray which wafts across the valley rather horizontally.  Today outside I saw a…..

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bird 3
any ideas?  Never have seen one of these out back. 

I am thinking… about the difference between unconditional love and unconditional approval.   Specifically, thinking how difficult it is not to let one compromise the other. Either way. 

I am thankful… for mild weather during our recent travels, for some long teary talks, for finishing the last of my follow up bloodwork, for letters from old friends, for happy children. 

In the kitchen… Coconut Cake for Brendan's birthday.  It was much like a Tres Leches cake.  Otherwise, I need to draft some menus for the new year aptly dubbed The Year of the Vegetable after hearing my husband tell the kids on New Year's Eve, "Let's get something good for tomorrow, then on Monday we all start to eat like Mom." ; ) 

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He is 7 today btw : )  The beardless one, that is. 

I am wearing… boot cut jeans, a slouchy sweater in blue's, silver earrings, clogs.  I am longing to return to more skirts however and have been working on leg and footwear. Found some promising 'thermal-strumpf-hosen' (tights) today which really do look warm.  

I am creating… new themes for a new year at the Snapshots Around the World blog.  Asher and Colin are on board as guest bloggers from Korea and Colorado. This has been such a cool project.  Come join us! I-phonography welcome!  

I am going… back to the dance class routine this week. A couple big trips in the works for spring. 

I am reading… The Coming of the Monster, the last of the Francis Owen Dudley novels I began last year.  Will share more tomorrow. 

I am hoping… Colin has a safe trip back across the ocean as Zach did, and that the little ones slip back into their routine easily. They have had a fabulously fun few weeks but are a bit overstimulated.  We all needed this time together though. 

I am learning…  about flash photography.  (not as quickly and easily as I would like) 

Around the house… beds have been changed, towels all washed again.  The tree and decorations are still up but a walk with Moira after dark tonight revealed that all the neighbors' houses look the same.  Reminded myself that the Christmas season rightly begins on Christmas Eve, not ends.  Still, it will be a good week before the house recovers from several weeks of surface cleaning. 

A favorite quote for today… found on Jen's blog. 

One of my favorite things… family game nights. There is an animated game of Apples to Apples going on next to me right now.  There's been a lot of late night game playing around here.  It is late here now.  But I can't bring myself to break it up knowing Colin flies out tomorrow.  I can't bring myself to go to bed either.  Just hanging on for a few more moments.  My table lately…

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wrestle

http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/

4711

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I don't know why I never put two and two together, but the city of Cologne and the perfume didn't connect for me until our recent visit.  As it turns out Eau de Cologne is not in fact French, but German.  The formula was originally given as a wedding gift from a Carthusian monk to a young businessman.  He set up shop in Cologne and used the building number "4711" to name the scent.  

This story had come to light before we visited Cologne.  While wandering the city I was thrilled to stumble upon the store which still bottles the original scent.  We had to stop and check it out.  I travel better with Fun Facts at the ready. ; ) 

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cologne

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Feast of the Holy Family

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(Cologne Cathedral window)

 "In Nazareth, home life was sanctified, and a perfect example was given to every Christian family.

Grant, we beseech Thee, that we may fully comprehend and faithfully imitate the virtues of the Holy Family so that we may be united with them one day in their heavenly glory.

Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen."

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(Trier Cathedral bas relief)

Say Cheese

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We were able to squeeze in a few snapshots of the kids all together – or almost all together – during the little window of sunshine we saw this week.  An increasingly rare treat. (both the sunshine and the getting of them all together ; ))

Jan

Hard to imagine I have children with beards and children who need me to brush their teeth.  There are two decades between Abbie Rose and Zach (and Colin).
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We have had to wait a very long time for this picture, Zach and I. 

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And the peanut girl at the end here. : ) 

One more day of most of my babies in the house and then we are all off to different corners of the world once again.  The past couple weeks have been exhilarating and exhausting.  Wouldn't trade either for the world.  The one thing that would have made the holidays complete would have been Asher. But I am grateful for every minute I have with each of them. Every one of them a gift. Every one of them different. Not a repeat in the group <g>