Elephunning

A week and a half in under 5 days!

2011-05-26T10:36:00.002-05:00

So on weekends I work at my favorite yarn shop, Knit and Caboodle and on Sunday that is where I was when I received a text message that about stopped my heart. It was my oldest daughter, Hannah who said, "there are bees in my room." She was absolutely panicked which is understandable considering how allergic she is. So her dad decided it was time to set a bug bomb off in her room and presto they would be gone... She slept upstairs Sunday night as it smelled awful and was dirty in her room. Monday morning she crept downstairs to find something before school and found two more bees in there. Sigh. So, I went down to investigate, and found them definitely in her room and upon further looking around I heard them...In Alex's ceiling. I came upstairs and was feeling a little nervous myself, not just because I didn't want to get stung, but I knew one of our kids is allergic (the other two have never gotten stung). So, Keith and I called in the big guns. We called the pros. And were told that they wouldn't be able to come until Tuesday between 8 and 2 (and that appointment time always drives me nuts). We did feel a little better for a little while because we had a plan.

What we didn't count on was that others had plans too.

By Monday evening, the bees had made it into the laundry room which made me decide I was not going in there. And we found two upstairs. Killed them I did, killed them dead.

So, with Alex camping out on the couch, all 8 guinea pigs upstairs, Hannah camping out in Abby's room with her we went to bed.
Oh how I would have stayed in bed if I had known what was about to happen.

Bright and early Tuesday morning we got a call from Boeing saying that my mother in law was being taken to the ER because after having a very low blood pressure all week, it had spiked crazy high. Keith still had to go to work which would strand me here with no way to go get Lin if she got released. And then the bug guy showed up in the middle of that stress to tell us yes, you have honey bees but have no fear, I will save the day! So, feeling a little more steady myself I called Lin's boss to figure out if there was a way to get her car off the Boeing property so we could use it (see after 9/11 you can no longer just drive up to defense plants like you use to without clearance). He was more than happy to help us but needed to figure out the best plan of action. So, Keith finished getting ready for work, and the rest of us got ready to run out the door with him. We showed up at Boeing with keys in hand and received her car, and went our separate ways (Keith to work, me home to wait on any news from the hospital).

In the end Lin ended up spending the night and came home yesterday basically all because her doctor didn't look at her meds and took her word for what she was on instead of what was in her file. So a change of meds happened and now she is feeling good.

Last night I got to meet my new group of beginner knitters! And after a little talking to one of them, I found that one of the ladies is my husbands kindergarten teacher! How cool is that? Talk about full circle. Teaching a former teacher. Fills my heart with happiness!

And tonight, is probably one of the proudest nights a parent can experience. Our oldest daughter, Hannah, is graduating 8th grade is the valedictorian of her class and is giving a speech (which I am sure will be awesome and a little jaw dropping for some). So while the week certain has been full of bumps everyone is safe, healthy, and happy. Good way to end the week.

Happy New Year

2011-01-07T14:19:00.003-06:00

This year brings with it so many chances and many wishes to be made and granted.

Last year was a hard one. I lost one of my best friends ever after a long battle with cancer at the young age of 31. Doesn't seem fair still that her husband and two young kids are without their wife and mom. Then I lost a wonderful lady that I adopted as an extra Grandma. Grandma Sweetser encouraged me to sing in the choir even though everyone picked on me about it and gave me hugs that I was missing sometimes. And then to top it all off I lost my Grammie, my last living grandparent. She taught me so much, to cook like her and mom, to knit and how to embrace the Yankee that I am. These three women were some of the toughest ladies I know and every day I miss them.

With the new year comes so many possiblities...I promise myself to put myself first more, cook healthier for my family, knit more complicated patterns, make myself a sweater, and embrace life more fully. With this new year also comes with the chance to be a foster mom to angora rabbits! Here is the first little dude, Mr. F as we call him.

It is almost tomorrow.

2010-08-14T23:53:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow is my son's 12th birthday and as we sit on the edge of his becoming a teen I am trying to figure out this new roll. As nice as it would be for things to stay the same, I do understand the need to become a man and do more with his dad and less with me. However, he has always been my little man and thus makes it a little more of a stab in this moms heart. I have never been a mom to a boy before or since so this has been all new every step of the way.

The day Alex was born was a beautiful one, aside from my husband looking into my eyes (knowing all the messed up pregnancy dreams I had had) and said, "Look honey, you had a lizard!" My boy was a big baby weighing in at 9 lbs and 14 ozs and 22.75 inches long. But I didn't see any of that, all I could see was this beautiful baby with the bluest and biggest eyes I had ever seen. The nurses were all talking about how it looked like he was actually taking it all in, not to mention he was holding his head up in the delivery room! So we named him with a name that may be a blessing, it may be a curse, but Alexander Nicodemus Merseal he has become. So on this day, I vow to try to be the best I can for him to turn a great young man into the world. Happy Birthday. I have loved you since before I could see you, and love you more each day since.

What have I done?

2010-05-18T14:01:00.002-05:00

Okay, so my friend Terri was here the other night and very innocently said something to the effect that I was a good knitter because I only do one project at a time... This caused me to look at my toes... I guess I have every one fooled! So I will air openly what I have on the needles right now...

First there is Shipwreck, I am doing this in a beautiful Mountain Colors Winter Lace, color Crazy Woman. Kind of at a stand still as I need beads.

Second, I have the awesome Sunbells socks and am almost halfway done with the second sock!

Then there is Painted Elly, which I am doing in Jojoland Melody. This is cool looking but I am dragging my feet because I am not sure if it will be long enough... sigh...

Then there is a pair of argyle socks which need my love badly... that makes four...

and the Elizabeth Zimmerman sweater that my brain and body can't agree on...that's 5....

which wouldn't be so bad if I didn't want to cast on for the Vernal Equinox right now! Oh well. Now I have admitted guilt... I feel better.

Tomorrow

2010-05-04T08:37:00.002-05:00

So, tomorrow is Hannah's 13th birthday. Aside from the fact that I don't feel old enough to have a teenage daughter, the day always makes me think of a different time. Hannah was 2.5 weeks late, and I didn't know any better and didn't question my doctors opinion of letting me go a little longer. I lost 27 lbs. when I was pregnant with her as morning sickness was morning, noon and night. The day before she was born I cleaned out the kitchen cupboards and packed up the things we would not need because we were also getting ready to move, and for dinner I decided to make pizza. After dinner I remember not feeling so well so I laid down on the couch and fell asleep. Some time around midnight I woke up feeling the wave that is nausea and ran to the bathroom. As I sat on the edge of the tub for the millionth time in the last 9 months, I became aware that I had a terrible backache. So I thought maybe a shower would help.... I bounced back and forth between the nausea and the pain for another hour before I decided to wake Keith up. I was getting scared because the pain felt like someone jabbing me with a knife.

Well he got up and watched me for a few and decided it was time to call the doctors office. The nurse actually laughed at us when we said that my back pains were happening about every 5 minutes. Looking back I know now that I was having back labor, but really nothing I had read prepared me for this!

So, after they decided that I better get to the hospital, Keith called our friend Jasper for a ride. See being poor college students we had no car. So at 3 am. after I had scooted down the stairs on my bum, Jasper roared up in the "bumblebee" truck and took us on a high speed trip down the highway. We got to the hospital and the emergency enterance was locked...really. So, I had to walk around to another door.

Once we got to the hospital things started to blur together. At first they didn't know whether I was in real labor or not (hour 4 folks) and then they decided to give me demerol (which I found out I was allergic to). I don't remember much between then and the actual delivery room, except my husband pacing. They kept coming in the room and watching the monitors and making notes, they acted worried but didn't tell us anything was wrong. At some point a nurse went to leave the room and looking over her shoulder says, "if the baby comes before I get back remember to support the head" I don't know much but, probably a couple with their first baby on the way, completely scared as we were, she should have been a little understanding.

Finally they told me they wanted me to give them a trial push. The next thing I know the doctor is standing there telling me to stop while she got her gown on the rest of the way! A couple of pushes later Hannah was born at 11:35 am. I thought then and I know now that everything that followed was not normal for a healthy baby. I wasn't allowed to touch her even, she was blue, she had her cord around her neck twice, and she was limp. No crying. except for my tears there were none. The immediately gave her oxygen, started rubbing her, and within seconds she started to fuss. The whole room let a sigh of relief. I touched her for just a second, not registering the words the nurse was saying about lack of oxygen, limp, observation. Then the focus turned back to me... I couldn't stop my teeth from chattering, my temp was up to 104.5 and my blood pressure fell so low they were having issues finding it. Why? We still don't know, could be the reaction to Demerol, the stress, anything.

It was 7 that night before I was even allowed near her again, I had a mask on, and she had all kinds of tubes hooked up to her. We found out later that she had hypoglycemia (still does) and had broken her collar bone. She spent the first 6 days of her life in neonatal and the first morning she woke up at home was Mothers Day.

Today, she is a healthy, smart, funny, young lady. I love her to pieces and some day I hope she realizes the scares that she gave us her very first week. So, Happy Birthday Hannah. 13 times around the sun, something once we didn't think you would get to. I love you.

Okay who stole my time?

2010-05-01T22:28:00.003-05:00

Appalled am I that it has been 2 years since I even tried to sit and write. So much has happened and yet so much is still the same.
We are still in St. Louis (although the day can be seen where that might not be the case), Keith and I are still going to school (Keith graduates in a couple of weeks!), the kids continue to grow faster than I can keep up.
In the time since I wrote I have finished a bunch of projects ranging from hats, shawls, socks, mittens. At the moment I have way more projects on the needles than neccessary. I will work on posting new pictures I promise.
So before I leave anyone who might see this I promise I will be back, I feel a recipe coming on again!

Only a few more weeks

2008-04-16T12:39:00.002-05:00

I am insanely happy about the semester almost being over. The very thought of being able to do whatever I need and want to for even three weeks while DH and kiddos finish up the semester makes me so happy!!! I have felt like I am running with no hope of catching up in the near future this term. I think between me getting sick(which is fairly rare) and taking a couple of classes which are project based, just too much.
Meanwhile tomorrows goal is to get pictures of Oblique online and show everyone how it is going. This weekend we (DH and I) are escaping to go hang out with a couple of our friends at Camp Zoe for a weekend of song and dance! Jerry Garcia band and the Swag! I am excited and hopefully this will ground me a little. As a former music major I find even in this life of nutrition that I need the musical escape every now and then to just relax. I hope we have good weather it sounds though like we will get rain on Friday... Cross your fingers. See you all soon!

Too long

2008-03-28T10:00:00.003-05:00

I apologize for taking so long to blog again. No real excuse just life, I guess. I have been knitting like a crazy person... I have a couple of people to picture still of various projects but I promise I will do that soon. Here is one picture of Hannah trying on her brothers Christmas socks. And another of Lucky kitty smiling as he cuddles with my very own beautiful sock.... I have never known a cat to smile as much as he does.

School continues...I have a little more than 11 hours left! Scary and then I get to start doing Dietetic work. Excited however nervous it has been 11 years since I have had a full time job. Being a mom has been more a top item but the kids keep on growing. It must be the good and Yum-o food like the Buffalo Chili from Rachael Ray. The kids love trying new foods so at least one night a week I try to fix something completely different. No one can ever say that the food is boring in this house.

Right now I am working on a sweater with Cascade yarn that my wonderful, understanding friend Deb gave me for my birthday. I am making Oblique from Knitty. Isn't it beautiful? For anyone who doesn't know me I am a rather busty girl and find it hard to find sweaters that will fit without major alterations. This is my first attempt to knit a grownup sweater. I am excited! I will try to get some pictures of it soon. I am off to do some much needed home and housework.

Time...

2007-11-28T18:01:00.000-06:00

In the last few months time has slipped away...A month ago my mother in law had to make the terrible decision to put Pookie to sleep. It was horrible. She got very sick very fast. Pookie had been with Lin and Keith for 18 years...Long time. We all miss her yowling when she did not get her way. The picture above shows one of the other tragiedies of the year... We still think Zeke is going to wander into the room with his funky strut. On the right you can see what I did at the start of October. Turned out pretty well. First paying gig and for a wedding! Okay so that isn't quite true...LONG STORY! The semester is almost over and I feel good about this semester so far. Hope the next two weeks go smoothly. So many things have happened recently it all seems a blur. One friend who was diagnosed with breast cancer in June has almost finished chemo! One more treatment. Meanwhile another friend is in my thoughts while she just tries to deal with the sheer weight of her news. My thoughts are with her always. I will be glad to be on the other side of Christmas as I always end up missing my family. I have so many it feels strange to only have us.(Okay so that is 6). But my mom has 10 brothers and sisters...And I am one of 9. So you can see a pretty HUGE family just there... Time keeps coming and time keeps going and so it will continue... Do we ever feel caught up? I haven't yet. Most of the time I feel good about it but just for a moment I would love to freeze the kids and enjoy them just this moment. I have been knitting lately and will try to get pictures of my sock on here soon. And maybe I will have a Christmas present picture too!

Peace to you and yours,

Sarah

Pushed under

2007-09-11T14:52:00.000-05:00

I must maintain control...The last few weeks have flown. I really don't know what my problem is but I seem unable to catch up with myself this semester. I guess this might just be one of the reasons behind NOT having kids and a marriage before deciding what you want to be when you eventually grow up. I am trying to adjust to the schedule, add to the fact that wonderful Hubby is also now a fulltime student. Oh and guess what the Girl Scouts are calling. I love being me and love that I have been able to stay home with my kids because I had no career to get back to... but they depend on me so much that some of the pressure of keeping the place in order and normal mom stuff makes me put off studying... Pushes me under the bus to say the least. So for now I have not forgotten you my blog, I miss the time we briefly shared and I promise I will get in the groove this week. Peace from the inside out!

I am guilty

2007-08-15T12:23:00.000-05:00

Okay so I thought I would try and write more often...the problem with that is that with 3 kids on spring break my time has been well crazy lately. But, the kiddos are back to school already and next week I start back myself! My friend PG13 had written about the beers I brought to her and then I thought "eeks it has been too long since I posted anything" Before I do anything else though here are some beers that although I can't drink beer due to allergy everyone says these are the best Vermont beers...Magic Hat "9"; Long Trail "Blackberry Wheat"; and
Trout River "Hoppin' Mad Trout"
Knitting has not been going so well aswell it is too freaking hot here. My northern blood is boiling. All I want to do is go back to Vermont where I was a couple of weeks ago and deal with what they consider a hot summer... I am knitting nothing at the moment. The last thing I tried to knit, I frogged. I am bored and I don't know where to begin. I have laceweight which I would love to try but am kinda scared because none of my other projects have been turning out right. One of first blogs had a picture of the Yarn Harlots snowdrop shawl that I had started and that is about how far I have gone so far... Maybe that is what I need to work on.
As I leave here are a couple of pictures of my minivacation to Vermont...how I miss home.

It's been awhile

2007-06-30T11:24:00.001-05:00

Okay so my personal goal of writing at least once a week has failed. Too much going on. I have been missing my family a bunch lately and have decided that because of that today I am going to make my Grammies Wheat Germ Brownies...Don't let the wheat germ fool you these are gooey and full of molasses. And yet better for you than if they were made with flour. I grew up with these and the smell of them while they bake and cool brings me right back to sitting on Grammies kitchen floor with the molasses spoon in my hand savoring each lick. Molasses what a New England tradition... So if you feel the desire here is the recipe:
Wheat Germ Brownies
1/4 C melted butter or Marg.
3/4 C Sugar
1/4 C molasses
2 eggs
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. nutmeg( I use freshly grated)
1 C raisins
1 C wheat germ
Appx 1 C sunflower seeds
1/2 C powdered milk
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Mix all of these together and bake in a 8 X 8 buttered and wax paper lined pan(butter paper) at 350 degrees for 30ish minutes. The brownies will pull away from the sides of the pan when done. Remove from oven and let cool for about a half hour then turn upside down and peel off wax paper. These tend to stick to the paper so you haven't done anything wrong if they don't stay together. Enjoy. From my family to yours.

Zeke, we love and will miss you....

2007-06-19T22:58:00.000-05:00

You have been there wise old man for a long time. Now we must say goodbye... Know we all love you and will think of you and your little strut...your talking back...your insistance on eating whatever we have...the pizza man...Hugs forever...We love you...

What now?

2007-06-18T11:09:00.000-05:00

Ever drift aimlessly in the knitting scene, tired of knitting the same type of thing again and again? Unsure of where to travel next? I finished my socks in Step last night. I then discovered that the sweater I so badly wanted to knit wasn't going to look right with my yarn given my gauge was way off the given...I have had this yarn for a year now and I am no closer to making into something for myself than I was then. Even better it has been discontinued...surprise... my knitting chicks can attest to the fact that it has been nothing but trouble even to simply wind up. So I am faced with two sock yarns to start...I am tired of socks. I have made 6 pairs of socks for myself in the last year....4 for my kiddos....one for the hubbie and several pairs of baby booties... I want a break...So I might start an afghan...I know here it is June in Missouri and I am thinking of starting a warm blanket. My friend needs a blanket. I am off to search the patterns in my stash.

Catching up with my sock pics!

2007-06-01T14:26:00.001-05:00

So today I caught a break in the weather and went outside to catch some much needed pictures of some of the socks I have done. Last summer I had done the Jaywalkers with some cotton mix yarn that I think was Online brand. If it wasn't then it was Sockotta. I love them but they are a bit loose...I tried to knit on 1s but that wasn't working so any ways here they are...

A couple of weeks ago I started and finished this awesome pair of Monkey socks from Knitty in Jitterbug that some wonderful fellow sock knitters got me for my birthday! It says Popsicle but we thought Jamacian man! They are so me! I love crazy yarn! Unpredictable beautiful yarn. Jitterbug was fun to work with and so soft I will certainly go and get more as soon as the budget allows... This was the end result...

This week I have been getting ready for the end of school and managed to get the first of the Spiral eyelet pattern done in Step! I love it! So soft! Definitely will be looking for colors I can stand in this one...It is tamer than most my sock yarn but I like the colors together and it just looks right. Who knows what the next pattern may be...can't wait to see which yarn calls out to me next!

I'm it?!? AGHH!

2007-05-25T18:09:00.000-05:00

Okay so Deb tagged me this week and I have been way to chicken to do anything about it... 7 things? Mmmm...

1. Most people don't know that I was born in El Paso, Texas at the Army Medical Center. I frankly have been slightly ashamed I wasn't a REAL Vermonter.

2. I met my husband on the internet. I DO NOT recommend this to any one else but it has worked for us for 11 years!

3. One of my best friends has been my friend since I was 10 and she was 9. That means this year is our 20th year of being friends...Scarey!

4. All of my immediate family lives in Vermont and New Hampshire. There is a constant battle between which is better...I have never lived on the other side of the river and have always called Vermont home.

5. I am one of 9 children. My dad and his first wife had three boys ( a set of twins and a single), then he married my mom and had three girls, THEN he married Aurie and inherited her kids so 2 step brothers and a step sister. For a long time we kidded my dad about heading the Brady Bunch.

6. I lived on goat farms until I was almost 10. I plan on going back and having a few because of my experience. I love goat cheeses and milk... it doesn't bother my stomach like cows milk which is actually why my mom started getting them.

7. My strangest pet I ever had was an iguana named Sampson( we found out later Delilah would have been correct). The guy at a pet store in the Ozarks said no one wanted her and he was going to let her go in the parking lot when he closed shop. Now any one that knows me knows I am a softy when it comes to animals. So I took her home and got online and started to read about them. She lived to be 7 years old. She was 6 and a half feet and she rode all the way to Vermont from St Louis on the dash of my 87 Taurus... She was so happy to be in the sun. My dog use to lick her and guard her from the cats...Mellow Rocks!

So there you go. My 7 things...trouble I am having is who to tag next...Oh I know... Here it comes your way Em.

In the meantime, I have put down the snowdrop shawl because I can't decide if I screwed up or if it is just because it is my first lace... My new sock is awesome and I will try to get some pics up soon.
Peace to all.

Look what she did!!!!

2007-05-20T15:20:00.000-05:00

Hannah did this almost all by herself minus a few drop stitches! She now is the proud owner of a washcloth! So happy am I!

To start anew

2007-05-20T11:35:00.000-05:00

Okay so I started a new project. I decided I have been terribly boring as of late just knitting sock after sock...I have had this beautiful lace weight in my collection for almost a year now (http://www.knitpicks.com/Shimmer_YD5420112.html in morning mist) and frankly I have been too chicken to get involved with it...I don't want to mess it up so...there it sat. Well I figure the semester is over and I have a little more time on my hands than before so why not... I have a great support system and probably between us we could figure this out... Okay so I am chicken when it comes to trying new stuff with yarn but then I love it... I am not sure where that comes from but it probably drives everyone around me nuts.... This I will try to amend...I will be more daring with my yarn. That in mind I chose the yarn harlots snowdrop shawl http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/images/Snowdrop_Shawl_v1.0.pdf for my first attempt. It looks to be a easier but interesting pattern. I will keep you all informed on how it goes... knit on knitters, knit on.

Relief

2007-05-18T06:48:00.001-05:00

Last night in the middle of my weekly Stitch and Bitch gathering my husband called to see if I wanted to get my grades...I probably should have said I will wait til I get home but I had been on edge all day about this so I said go ahead... I was happy to hear what they were and am now relieved and ready to get back to it. I love going to school and learning but the end of a semester always has me on the brink. So today I woke more relaxed than I have been in weeks... Thanks to all my friends and family that have put up with my craziness!
On another note Deb, http://www.scarfitdown.blogspot.com/ has allowed me to borrow her sock collection book from Interweave. Hopefully I can decied on which one to knit with either my Step or Lornas Lace. I also have some Regia Silk that is begging to become something... That is my goal for the day...
Peace to all.

Ever have one of those moments

2007-05-16T07:55:00.000-05:00

Last night my daughter and I had our girl scout meeting, but we as a troop had planned to make dinner for their parents. You know what for a bunch of kids that had never helped in the kitchen before they had a great time. The food was great and they each tried something new. So we packed up afterward and headed home. Silly me thought oh now I can relax and knit my sock... Well, I got the kids in bed and sat down to try on my sock I had gotten to the picked up stitches...this is the point where I always try them on for myself...And guess what. They don't even come close to fitting....I growled and grumped at my poor husband who said, "Just take it out." Didn't he know how much love and care I had put into this sock? No. So this morning I am sitting here with a beautiful skein of Lornas Lace that I just want to become a nice pair socks with no more trouble...Note the ball it is in...since no matter how much hinting I give to hubby he just doesn't seem to see the importance of a ball winder. Maybe now he will understand.

An attempt to stop being blogless

2007-05-14T07:50:00.000-05:00

A while ago a few of my friends who shall remain nameless called me blogless on their blogs and this was true. But no longer!! Be patient fellow knitters as I am new to this and look forward to the journey that this will in no doubt become. As the mother of three (not including my husband) my posts may be more spread out and I may not be able to write something everyday but hopefully more often than not I will. A bit about myself first... my husband and I got married almost 11 years ago after a whirlwind relationship that left our heads spinning. We both were college students with a love for each other that we couldn't have held back. We had our first two kids within the first three years of our marriage. I put my education on hold. Then came our youngest. We lived in Vermont and were loving it but some times there are other things that need to be done too so we packed up the herd and moved back to St. Louis. Let me tell you this farm girl never thought she was going to live in or near the city growing up. Well any ways I am back in school, studying nutrition and loving it! after we finish school here we will head for the mountains again. Until then we will keep ourselves busy with many trips to the zoo.I knit to keep myself sane, it's a family tradition. I am knitting saucy socks now (pictures to follow), I just finished Cookie As monkey socks and let me tell you this was one of the best patterns I have ever followed there was no guessing and frankly the striping of my Jitterbug yarn was perfect. I will be back another time to post some pictures...Peace to all..