No School

Day one: Below zero temperatures. Definitely not what I want to deal with. Luckily, school officials thought that below zero temperatures that hovered near -20 F warranted closing school for the day. So I get a day with my snuggle bunny, a gas stove, and warm tea. Well, and exam prep, but we'll pretend that's not there for a while...

Who can work with this cutie around?

Day two: snow snow everywhere. Last night I closely watched the school closings, and I dreaded the morning as I saw many school districts along my 40 minute drive to work announcing that they would be closed. Luckily, my district also decided to close for this snowy and cold day. 

So another day to get things done. But day two gets to be more interesting than day one. 

As part of my 6000 g weight stashdown, I present dryer balls

Wool dryer balls are a great way to use up stash that just appeared in your closet. No, the yarn didn't just appear, but I never had a plan for it-- a co-worker was destashing, and I find it hard to resist wool. I'm contemplating offering these for sale in pairs, but am struggling with the best way to market them. 

Mitten Cuff

I'm working on mittens for a friend who requested them in time for cold weather. Oops. The cold is already here, and the mitts aren't done. Patterns were eluding me, so I'm adapting several to fit my needs and vision.

That's all for me on this pair of snowy cold days-- off to do less glamorous (but totally necessary) chores like laundry and dishes. :)

God Bless!

It was a Dark and Stormy Night

With the humidity we've been having, rain is a welcome change. I'm honestly hoping for more daytime rain, as our last two storms were at night.

a poorly lit doctor's office WIP photo

But even with the storms and intermittent humidity, crochet has taken place! My Hexy now has two skeins worth of Cotlin into it, and I have a third still in my stash, with several more on the way to finish up. Not the perfect stashdown project, but stash is still moving from yarn to WIP to FO.

To keep my 'theme' of project polygamy, I did start another project last night. I'm testing a baby sweater pattern for MAD Cap Designs, and so far so good. My husband made a comment about the last sweater I made-- it was a knitted vest for my brother and took 3 years to make- and I scoffed, saying that crochet plus baby equals a faster project. I really hope I'm right this time :) I was only able to get the bottom ribbing band done at craft night last night, but I am hopeful that spending some time with my DVDs will make the progress go faster.

Nothing really in exciting colors yet. Sometimes its uncanny how my colors match my mood and/or the weather. And my dear Michigan cannot decide if it wants rain or sunshine. Early early this morning when I took my husband to work, it looked like more rain. As the day goes on, it's starting to look like sunshine again. So much "wait and see" with the weather.

My reading this week is work related. If anyone ever tries to tell me that teachers don't work in the summer, I may get violent. Take a look at one-fourth of my work:

I will have 4 totally new to me classes next school year, while also being on maternity leave at the beginning of the year. Not sure if this situation is better or worse then last year's, where I had less than two weeks to plan for 2 classes-- plus a wedding. Oh well, the world of teaching is always exciting.

Linking up with Tami & Ginny. 

Sunshine

There is so much to be gained from a sunny weekend! I definitely feel better, though I am still counting down to the end of the school year. My students say there are four weeks left, but it's really five- though I suppose it depends on what you're counting. I'm really wishing for my mother-in-law's home schooling schedule- school starts after Labor Day and ends at Memorial Day. September through May sounds perfect to me... But to get that schedule and still be working outside the home, I'd have to go back to school and get my master's degree- it's nearly a college schedule, which I totally love. 

I go back and forth every few weeks/months. Going back to school sounds extremely tedious, but I would love teaching college classes. E and I go back and forth, but ultimately we know God will work things out for us, for the best. 

I have to constantly remember the sunny weekends, to keep me going through the week. My depression has waxed and waned, but usually gets worse when I am vulnerable at home. Those are the times when I don't need to hide things from my students and coworkers. I've had two 'breakdowns' this week, and am finally warming up to the counseling idea. With the baby, E is really reluctant to go the medication route. It's been a tough road, and every time we think things are looking up, I go downhill again. Job stress is probably the major trigger right now.

Remembering the nice peaceful days, the days of pleasant weather, help me to refocus a bit. Prayers are always appreciated. It's hard for me to come to terms with this- it's one of those things that I always thought would never happen to me. Admitting and accepting it is the first step. 

Remember the sunshine. 

My Weekend in Photos

I had a busy weekend! I take lots of photos, and never share them properly, so be prepared for some crazy stuff :)

Work-in-Progress all weekend

Practical birthday gifts from Mom & Dad- mugs, coffee, contact solution.

More practical, but also fun. Birthday phone from fiance and new wallet from sister.

"Birthday" Lunch- Chinese buffet is one of our favs.

Can you tell that fiance's food was "less healthy"?

Dad took me & sister out for dinner on my birthday- birthday beer!

I love Applebee's appetizer sampler.

Mom knows I love buttons for my craft show hats. I don't think I'm going to run out any time soon.

WIP shown with Birthday yarn. Brother #1 actually listened when I said I wanted Candy Skein yarn!

As you can see, lots of goings on.
I'll be back on Wednesday for more WIPs.

Slippers in the Spring

When we thought the rain was going to stop, the field behind our house looked like this. 

 So, I was a weirdo the other day, and shared a picture of my toe poking through a hole in my hand-dyed, crocheted, felted slipper. I realized that there was no explanation for this problem, etc. A while ago, I shared this pair of slippers that I had made with yarn dyed with my cousins. They were not sturdy enough (to me) for everyday wear, so when I remembered that I had a stack of projects to felt, these slippers went in the wash too. I wore them, I loved them, but my toes poked through the double-crochet that didn't quite felt all the way (or perhaps, too much, as after the second washing, they were a little snug).

These slippers will find a home with my cousins who dyed the yarn initially, as the kiddos have smaller feet than mine, and have a cold basement that could require wool slippers. But after wearing them for a few days, I realized that I really, really wanted a pair of wool slippers for myself. The first thing that came to mine was this pair of slippers, which I made for my aunt. I would, of course, actually felt them, even though the pattern doesn't call for it.

I have the needles, the yarn, and the desire. However, since I knit really slow, I'm not sure I will get them finished before I won't need them anymore. But! If nothing else, they will be ready for next winter.

(And with all this nasty almost-winter-again weather, I might actually get to wear them sooner then I think... If they get finished)

When the rain started again on Thursday, the field looked like this.

Oh, and don't forget!!!

 

Love my State

You know you live in Michigan when...

Forty degree weather means rolling down the windows and not wearing a coat.

I just love spring and summer, and I really want to switch over to a spring/summer wardrobe full of bright colors and sandals and painted toenails. And it's only March 4.