complaints department

To Mr. E. Bunny,

Let me begin by thanking you for all your years of hard work and dedication to your job. I fondly remember being a child and thoroughly enjoying your holiday (which will not be referenced by name, to protect your anonymity). I mean, what's not to love about a day entirely devoted to candy? That being said, I'd like to offer some constructive criticism regarding your handling of this year's holiday in particular.

First, while recommending we reuse last years um... "candy vessels" was both frugal and environmentally responsible of you, you might have wanted to mention that said vessels were buried in the attic under an entire year's worth of junk- I mean, memories, as this may have caused us to rethink our decision and just spend the five frickin' dollars on new ones. Also, you may have wanted to mention the location of the "candy vessels" prior to 11:30 the night before your holiday; this, as you may have guessed, was the time we realized we would either A) have to get our tired arses in the attic and start digging or B) tell our kids that you did a really good job of hiding the "candy vessels" this year and they would just have to look harder. Fortunately, we chose the latter. Former! Sorry, we chose the former. Of course, because we're good parents. Really. It's just that I get those two confused.

Second, you might have wanted to point out to a tired and ill Mommy that while she did indeed buy candy for the kids earlier in the week, she had not bought any that was actually small enough to fit inside the "candy vessels" which were now dusted off (and in some cases emptied out- ewww) and ready to be filled. This would have saved the children from the (hopefully not permanently scarring) horror of opening their "candy vessels" in the morning and finding... raisins and Goldfish crackers. ('Cause nothin' says fun like dried fruit and stale crackers.) And again, letting us in on that little fact at a time when most stores were open would have been quite considerate of you.

Lastly, I understand why your holiday has so much to do with rebirth- spring, Jesus and all that, but really, whose idea was it to boil dozens of eggs? Because did I mention this Mommy's not in her best form lately, and the smell of all those eggs was great for my stomach. Really.

In conclusion, I'd like to thank you once again for all your hard work. I know it must be difficult to be you. You are expected to work one whole day a year after all. I can see where that would take a lot out of a giant bunny. But, hey, I'm not judging! I'm just saying that in the future a little help would be appreciated. Because really, I'd hate to have to tell a certain someone to put you on his 'Naughty' list.

i'm still here

Between bouts of illness and boredom, there hasn't been much to blog about (nor have I felt up to it), but as things are starting to look (and feel) better I figured I'd dust off the old keyboard and let y'all know what has been going on with us as of late.

Big Sister chopped her hair off and donated it to Locks of Love. We're all proud that she decided to share something as personal as her hair with a complete stranger; it really is a great organization. Plus, she looks super-cute, no?

Here she is modeling the new 'do while holding the hair she donated.

On Thursday, my dad and I took Magic Baby to the orthopedist for a check-up on his broken arm - and they took the cast off! After less than three weeks, he is apparently healed! YAY! Who knew kids' bones were so resilient?

Last weekend, I accompanied my cousin and her friends to Boston where we got very lost.

The yellow line shows where we walked. The purple line shows where we were supposed to walk.

Eventually, though, we found our way to The Colonial Theater where we saw the hilarious musical Avenue Q.



It was hands-down one of the funniest things I have ever seen and I highly recommend it, with the caveat that the show is not for kids or the easily offended. I know, I know, it has puppets, but trust me- this is definitely R-rated stuff. Did I mention it's hilarious, though?


I think that's about it for interesting things lately. We're planning on dyeing Easter eggs some time today, and then tomorrow we're going to brunch at an amazing nearby restaurant with my parents, brother, his wife, and my grandmother. I'm hoping it's a nice, relaxing Easter here, and I wish all of you the same!

knitting (and family) update

Thanks a ton for all the good wishes you've all sent! Magic Baby is doing fine; he figured out how to climb on the couch with the cast today, he has decided it's cool to drive his Hot Wheels cars on the cast, and he told me the day after he got said cast that he likes the noise it makes when he hits it against the wall.

So, um, things are pretty much back to normal here. Except that Hubby and are have become slightly paranoid. Before this, it never bothered either of us that Magic Baby had a tendency to fall a lot, but now every time he stumbles our hearts are in our throats. I think this is why I've been so tired all week. The constant worry is getting to me, and I've tried to let some of it go, but it's really hard to do that with the lovely cast as a constant reminder. Also, I haven't really left Magic Baby alone at all. Not that I would leave him for long periods of time or anything (although there was that one time I did the marketing while he played in the kitchen. He was fine, though- and let me tell you that kid makes a mean souffle if you give him time). But before I at least felt comfortable using the bathroom or checking my blog while he was occupied in the living room. Now I'm convinced that the second I turn my back he's going to catapult himself off the furniture again. (My question is: Am I too paranoid now, or was I too lax then?) What this means is I've put him in his crib every time I've had too pee. Also, in case you haven't noticed, I've let my blogging slip. Every night I promised myself I'd get to the comments you all so nicely posted, and then every night Magic Baby would fight about falling asleep, and I'd pass out right after he did- around 10 or so. Basically, this is my long-winded way of apologizing for neglecting you all, again. I really appreciate all the great stuff you've said, though, and I'm going to try really hard to respond more quickly this time. As long as Hubby's home. Or the boy's in that bubble I ordered for him.

And now, on to happy things!

Before the whole broken arm fiasco, I was actually pretty productive in my knitting. Want to see?

Pattern - Liam Sweater by Just Jussi

Yarn - Lily Sugar'n Cream Cotton Solid in green (about 3 skeins)

Needles - US 6

Size made - 2 Toddler

Started - February 10th-ish, 2008

Finished (and by finished I mean still needs buttons and eyes for the sheep) - March 7th, 2008

Made for - the Testing Pool Group on Ravelry

I love this pattern. It was really easy, but if you're not a fan of garter stitch consider yourself warned: There's a ton of it here, but as the finished project is so darn cute, it's totally worth it! And it has sheep!

Cute (not-yet-sewn-on) buttons, no?

Those sheep are kind of creepy without their eyes, aren't they?

Pattern - Felted Guitar Strap

Yarn - Paton's Merino in black and red (about 1/2 - 3/4 skein each)
Needles - US 13
Size made - fwicked long
Started - February 22, 2008
Finished - February 25, 2008
Made for - Magic Baby

This was the first time I ever knit on a bias, and it was pretty cool. This pattern was also ridiculously easy and fast to knit, which may be why it ended up being much longer than it needs to. I would recommend actually having the guitar in hand before knitting this, as it is supposed to attach to the instrument by knobby things Magic Baby's guitar does not actually have. This means I have to figure out how to attach it. Then again, as Magic Baby is one-handed at the moment, he's not exactly going to be playing concerts anytime soon.

Pre-felting

Knitting on a bias = cool diagonals

Post-felting and still ridiculously long

Pattern - Pirate Sweater by Zoe Mellor

Yarn - Baruffa Merinos Sei in black (about 4 skeins), Baruffa Merinos Sei in white (about 2 1/2 skeins), Filatura Di Crosa Zara in red (about 2 1/2 skeins)
Needles - US 7
Size made - 8 Child
Started - January 2008
Finished - (and by finished I mean still needs to be put together) March 6, 2008
Made for - Big Sister

I've also done some knitting since 'the incident' because while it's true you can't wrap kids in wool to protect them from getting hurt, you sure can wrap their hurts in wool to show your love.

Pattern - K2P2 Rib Cast Warmer (made up as I went along; stripes added as I got bored)

Yarn - Baruffa Merinos Sei in black, Filatura Di Crosa Zara in red (leftover from Pirate Sweater)Needles - US 7
Started - March 3, 2008
Finished - March 5, 2008
Made for - Magic Baby

I treated this with Lanolin to make it water-resistant (like they do with cloth diaper covers). I hope it works, but at least it will keep the cast clean, remind Magic Baby that I love him and look cute.

Okay. That's it for actual knitting, but in all the recent madness (illness, vacation, injury), I forgot to mention something cool. The new Yarnival came out a few weeks ago and my sock post was in it! Yay! I'm so excited! (And thanks for suggesting I submit it, MadMad!)

*Sigh* I think that's everything. I know this is a really long post, but that's what I get for neglecting my blogging duties for so long. I promise I'll try to be better from now on. Really. (Hey, did anyone catch that I said "duties"?)

he is the consummate boy

From the "Nobody Saw That Coming" Department:

Yesterday, Magic Baby tried to stand up on the recliner in our living room. For what I swear was the 743, 301st time, I told him to sit down. Instead, he fell. Off the chair and onto the floor. The hardwood floor. Care to guess what happens when bone meets wood?

Apparently, he's not magical enough to fly.

That's right, bone loses (in this case the bone above the right elbow lost). This means we spent almost 9 hours yesterday getting him all patched up. During that time, we visited two hospitals, he got three sets of x-rays (which he hated), one i.v. (which he really hated), and was sedated for about half an hour so they could set the bone and put his cast on. Fortunately, he didn't require pins in the arm (which would have meant surgery).

Anyway, he's doing better now. He's home, and up and about (still getting used to his new center of balance) and seems in good spirits (although we're all still pretty tired from the whole ordeal). He actually doesn't seem to mind the cast, which is good because it has to stay on for 4-6 weeks. Thursday we're going to a pediatric orthopedist who will take more x-rays and make sure the bones haven't shifted (in which case he'll need pins after all). I have to say he was great about everything yesterday, though, especially considering he sat around for over six hours with a broken arm and only one dose of pain medication. I held him on my lap all day and we read books and sang songs and played goofy games with a toy rabbit my dad bought from the gift shop. He didn't mind the doctors and nurses, and really didn't even cry much. (The baby, not my dad.) He was a model patient, if I do say so myself.

Let me tell you though, nothing makes you feel worse than holding an injured baby all day knowing you were the one who could have stopped it. No blaming this one on Hubby, it was all me. And I know I can't be there all the time, but seeing him hurt still made me feel like a terrible mom. Who knows, though. Maybe some good will come out of this. Maybe he'll learn not to climb the furniture.

Although knowing him, I highly doubt it. He is two, after all.