Working On

Started working on a skinny blue and white diagonal scarf this week. These were a big hit last winter, so I am hoping to have a few listed in the shop before the season gets underway.

I finished up the second baby sweater for an order I got for newborn twins. They are going to be two cozy babies this fall.

Got these frames from the dollar store. Heinous, right? But, I thought they would be perfect for my upcoming craft fair. I spray painted them with a couple of coats of white paint and printed out my price listings. I think that they look good. I might do one more layer to really achieve the high gloss look.

How about you guys? What have you been working on??

Small Bursts of Productivity

It's humid today. Really humid and weird out. Eerie breezes, dark clouds, and soupy air. The kind of weather where you consider going to the mall just to escape it. Despite two consistent weeks of difficulty sleeping, I woke up this morning ready to tackle my "Summer To-Do" list. Two of the biggest things were organizing and sorting through all of the thousands of pictures I have uploaded into iPhoto since 2005 and organizing and sorting through this tremendous amount of yarn that I have attained. (Just a quick side note: When did I become my mother?!)

Yesterday I

tackled my photos. Ohhhh it felt so good to do this. I am certainly not finished, but it feels much more manageable at this point. How lucky are we to have all of this amazing technology at our fingertips? There really is not excuse for not being organized when there is such a thing as Facial Recognition and Auto Split and an ability to order by name, type, or date! I cannot imagine doing this with actual photos and albums. It would be a dizzying task.

Sorting and winding this massive basket of yarn has also been intensely gratifying. What a mess! I had gotten to the point where I was tossing skeins of yarn in to one bask

et and completed failed projects into another. I have rewound all of the skeins and am slowly unkitting the failed projects. It feels like I've gone yarn shopping! it has sparked so many ideas for upcoming projects that I cannot wait to get started on.

Over the Shoulder Boulder Holders

Please bear with my as I vent. I am having serious issues with bra buying these days. First, some background information. I have been equally cursed and blessed with large breasts. Way too large if you ask me. Recently, I went through the internal debate of having a breast reduction. Friends all agreed that it was a great idea. Women who had been through it raved about how much it changed their lives. And still I decided to reject the idea of surgery for now. Surgery felt terrifying, the risk factors felt too risky, and I just wasn't sure how I could fit it into my schedule. All that being said, I have not ruled it out for sometime in the future.

See, I didn't go through puberty until I went off to college. I was a champion Irish Step Dancer from the age of four until college. In high school, I was dancing up to thirty hours a week and like a competitive gymnast or profession ballerina, at 18 years-old, my body resembled that of a twelve year old. I remember my best girlfriends laughing at my 32A's throughout my senior year. Then I retired and suddenly puberty hit me like a ton of bricks. In one year I grew at least one cup size. Great, right? Well, they didn't stop there. And now I am stuck with an em

barrassingly large rack.

We all know the importance of a well-fitting bra. Large or small, a good bra makes all the difference. Well, in the last year I finally found the perfect bra for me. The Hanes Women's All-Over Comfort Underwire. And I found it at my local Target. Great, right? I was thrilled. But, when you have a larger chest, you go through bras fairly quick, no matter how much care you put in to preserving them. About six months ago, I went back to grab another couple and they were no where to be found. Worse than that, there was not one bra without padding in the whole joint. Alright, there were, but I am not ready to wear a nursing bra as my everyday bra!!! So I went to Walmart. Same thing. Racks and racks of padded bras. Then I went to an outlet bra shop nearby and it was the same thing there too!!

Does anyone else find this absurd? The very last thing that

I need is more padding. Seriously, I look outrageous in a padded bra. And I cannot be the only one!! Why this sudden conversion? I know that there is a societal conspiracy against women of age and women with curves, but we can't all look like 16 year old girls forever. My preferred bra was even difficult to get off the website, it was back ordered and took three weeks to get to my door. Are bra manufacturers and big box stores really turning their back on the non-padded, under wire bra? The bra that has supported decades of women? The bra that doesn't trick men? Perhaps I am a rarity here. Perhaps I am the only woman who wants a plain-old bra with a sturdy underwire and some strong spandex, but somehow how I don't think so.

Beach

One of the biggest reasons I moved here from Brooklyn was to be closer to the beach. Which surprised me. For most of my teenaged years, I had looked forward to living in a city. First I moved to Boston, then to NYC. I wanted it to fit me so badly. I wanted to love it. I wanted it to free me. But it didn't. I always felt uneasy, unsettled, uncomfortable. And not for trying. In NY I had amazing friends and was teaching at a school that felt designed for me. But after ten years of giving it a go, I finally made the decision to leave it behind. (I'm a slow learner, ok? And intensely stubborn!)

I have few memories of going to the beach as a kid. As a baby my parents still rented a house on the shore in Connecticut. I vaguely remember it, most of my memories are cobbled together by pictures I have seen and stories I have heard. But I do remember leaving. I remember

crying at the top of my lungs for the entire hour-long trip home, desperate to stay near the ocean. As

a child and tween (not that that word was around when I was 11) I have miserable memories from the beach. Ones that involved stinging sunburns, stale and sandy chips, long, hot car rides in which we always got lost, and, being the youngest of three, having to sit in the back, middle seat.

Then frequent visits to Maine and New Hampshire became my respite from city life and on one trip it dawned on me that this is where I needed to be. Today, I took my first, post-school year trip to the beach. I woke up, had some coffee, filled my water bottle and hopped in the car. Within ten minutes, I was parked and walking down the stone steps on to the sand. I keep a beach bag packed with a towel, two mini quilts, sunblock, and a frisbee in the car, along with my beach chair.(You nev

er know when the spirit is going to move you to have lunch or catch up with an old friend on the beach!) It was crowded, but the energy was lively. I set myself up, read a trashy magazine, listened to a couple of podcasts I had saved, and knit away at my latest baby sweater. It was one of those moments where you just sigh with happiness.

Replenish

Today didn't go as planned and I am ok with it. When drifting off to sleep last night, I made a mental list of things I wanted to get done today; my first day of vacation. Things that involved emptying the dishwasher, cleaning the living room, making my bed, mopping the bathroom floor, and hopefully go strawberry picking. Things that I have completely overlooked over the last two weeks of school. And then I woke up. At 10:30. TEN-THIRTY! I don't sleep until 10:30. If I sleep in, I sleep until 7:00, maybe 7:30. But that wasn't the case today. So, my plans went out the window. I was so befuddled by waking up so late that I wasn't sure whether or not to eat breakfast or lunch.

As a result, I threw my

plans out the window. I ate some lunchfast, lingered over coffee, went to the library, and instead of picking strawberries I stopped by a local farm and picked up a quart of strawberries that someone else picked.

It's still early in the day, but I am fairly certain that the dishwasher isn't going to get emptied before bedtime.

As a side note, I am making quick progress on one of the baby sweaters that is in the

que. Remind me to tell you the story about this great yarn.

Wrapping Up

Tomorrow is the last day of school. Although the year has gone quickly, this last week and a half has been endless. I finally climbed out from the mile of paperwork I was under. I look forward to getting the chance to just hang out and enjoy the kiddos and their families tomorrow.

End of the year gifts are always so tricky for me. I put a lot of pressure on myself to be crafty and come up with something unique. But the truth is, there is no time for that at the end of the year. So here is what I came up with.

For my para-educator who works 1:1 with a student. She is an avid quilter and loves going to see quilting shows. I figured a fat quarter and some quilting mags would be a nice way to start the summer.

My assistant puts up with me more than anyone else in the world. She recently finished a beautiful pink scarf with beads that I helped her finish. I figured some cozy cotton yarn, new bamboo needles and the summer issue of Interweave Knits would be perfect for her to bring with her on her trips to the beach.

And each of the therapists that work with my students get a Flower Hairpin. Just a little something to show my gratitude.

This time tomorrow I plan to put my feet up and enjoy a frosty beer!

To My Dad

My father, the youngest of the bunch

Wishing you the happiest of Father's Days. Thank you for all that you are and all that you do for me. I feel lucky to have you in my life.

Me and my dad

Covet

A few things that I am coveting right now.

I am forever on a quest to find the perfect on-the-go iced coffee cup. I drink iced coffee year round and now that I am brewing it at home, I tend bring it in either a mason jar or milk glass. Unfortunately I frequently end up wearing a good portion of it most days. Last week I spilled it while getting out of the car and ended up damaging a library book. (thankfully it was a good book that I am now the proud owner of.) I feel like this cup could help me.

It's officially strawberry picking season! I can't help but smile I see a PYO sign as I drive by my local farms. School's out next week and strawberry picking is tops on my list of things to do. If only I had this amazing bowl to rinse them in.

I would gladly take home any and all of the ceramics that Bison Homewares designs. Their color palette is gorgeous. How rare is it to like every color on a designers palette?

That coupled with their simplicity and usability, well I'm sold.

Booty

I turned 32 last week. Isn't that crazy? I think that it is! On most days I just don't feel old enough to be 32. But, I guess that it is out of my hands. I received several distractions that softened the sting of old age.

My big sister had my Heart is a Mussel blown up and put on to canvas. I love, love, love it. This is a picture of it hanging in my guest room. I think that it is a bit too small for that wall, but i have no doubt that will find a perfect home on one of the walls in there. (please disregard the fact that there are no sheets on the bed....I had lots of company this weekend.)

My big brother got me the laptop sleeve from berties closet that I have been coveting! Does fabric get any cuter??? I am heading to my dad's this weekend and I can't wait to pack it up for the trip!

Two of my besties came up for lunch this weekend and one of them bought me all of the beautiful buttons based on her reading of this blog post. I love that I got all sorts of crafty gifts!! One of the best birthday's yet. Cheers to another year and all that it brings.

Cute is a Baby Boy

I found myself a new hat model this weekend!

Container Garden

I live in a condo, which means no garden. I am ok with that. I'm not sure that I am ready for a garden. At least not one in the ground. So, for now I am starting with a container garden and I think that it is going well so far. Not to mention that I am kind of obsessed with it. It is really reinforcing. You give it water and sunlight and it grows. I've always known that, but this time around I am finally getting it!

I've got plants both inside and out. They make doing dishes so much more enjoyable, almost tolerable.

I've planted flowers: lupine, pansies, sunflowers and dahlias. And herbs: thyme, rosemary, basil, mint, dill, parsley, and chives. And then I planted a number of gladiola bulbs. I love being able to go to the garden when I am cooking. I have a feeling that this is the beginning of a long and happy relationship.

Serenity

is looking out my backdoor.

A Glimpse

Thought you might enjoy a glimpse of my recent weekend up at the lake.

The lovely lake.

Easing fears of a bumpy boat.

Enjoying that fresh country air.

Never underestimate the power of the beach.