House Update

The bid on that 70s house was accepted!

No bartering.  No haggling.  Just beautiful.  Sure thing.  The house is ours.  Wah hoo!

Now--I have to find a way to continue to write my Nano novel--pack the house--move (like, me? like, drive?  like, no way!)  and still do all the other things I have to do during the day...

The first inspection is this Friday.  R will be there.  N doesn't have school that day, so he'll be w me.  N isn't quite up to par w spending the night at R's house yet.  There is joy to be had having a child like N.  Sometimes that reticence and that need for known places and known rhythms is a very good thing for his mother.  Trust me.    I am not above using that to my advantage.

R will be there.  I have to tell him what to take pictures of for me -- the things I wanted to check.  I would like to be there for the inspection, but we're not certain who is going to be there.  With the inspector, our real estate agent, quite possibly their real estate agent.  R.  Then add in our two kids.  Certain mayhem--at least for me.  I have really good kids, and I know it.  But it's difficult on me to keep track of everyone, especially if N decides he's in a happy ornery mode.

So, R and I are on our way!  We are officially real estate investors now.  Even though the first house belongs to me.

Pictures to come--as soon as I have some....

Is This My First NaNo Update Here?

Facebook is wonderful for quick updates.  I forget to do things here though, because of it.

So, word count overall is now 14123 words.

Merit badges I have earned thus far:  nano socializing, caffeine abuse, procrastination, word-count padding (dream sequences), the rally, creative nonfiction...does secret noveling count if I am on the phone and still working on my story?  I work at home--secret noveling is a bit difficult in relation to how others are able to manage this...

I think I am going to keep re-earning these same badges over and over...and I like it....

Darling Daughter Knits--At Last

E finally learned how to do the knit stitch.

I never said she was an expert, but she does work her little butt off trying.

She made this washcloth for R.  She is over the moon that he actually keeps it on the window sill in his bathroom.

Won Yarn

I won this yarn through my knitting parents yahoo group.
It was I think the very last drawing of the raffle sweeps.

It's such lovely stuff.  When it arrived (after the WV trip) all I could think of was I want to make a shawl w this stuff (pakucho 100% certified organic cotton from Peru).

I spent days going through books and webistes, only to have to click in my head I have how many patterns that I myself wrote and designed, especially shawl patterns, waiting to be test knit?

So, once hte faroese wedding shawl is done being knit, the pakucho cotton will become ...something wonderful....

Makes Me Feel Like A Woman

This is what R got me for putting up with him -- ye gods, I love this man....

Yes--bathing suits on one side.  Bikinis.

Oh yeah--nuff said there.  :-)

Technically, most of the bottom picture are bikini bottoms....that is the free stuff...how cool is that?

Kids Pictures

Happy Kid Pictures

Yes, the kids 'camp out' when we are all together on the week-ends.

There are more pictures on facebook.

Pumpkins And More

Blue Hubbard Squash

Blue Hubbard Squash Baked

Our Pumpkin Patch Picks

the little Pumpkin's 'backside'

These are pumpkin plants grown from tossed out birdseed from the parrot.

The chilly wet weather killed them and the watermelon plants....unfortunately...

Next year--you just wait!

Yarn

I don't remember why it was important we took these pictures, but here we go anyway:

Oh, this is the dog-chewed sock yarn..  It's been rewound and is sitting on top the computer staring at me, wanting to become a scarf.  Luckily, I bought three skeins of this shade.

This is what we made E's hat request hat out of:

Isn't she pretty?

Lion brand homespun--her yarn choice for the above the hat that ticked me off so badly that we bought the above yarn to make it up instead.  I still need to make her a cloche at some point though...

Unveiling The Tattoo

R's tattoo in honor of his mother's passing.

Eckert's Fun Farm

Here are the pictures from our Pumpkin Picking Adventures......

The woman operating the ride took this facing into the sun--N loved it so much we rode it twice!

R took this one of us because the other was unclear.

He rode it.  He was pissed and upset the whole time.  He cussed me out for not 'saving' him, but it sure taught him about following through on what he wants and what he expects...I warned him he wouldn't like it, but that if he started it he'd have to finish.

E and me on Barney.  The best R could do trying to keep up w N on the ground.

The family camelid pic.

E finally petting a camel.

She's still in motion here at the mine shaft slide...

Joy Diet Catalog

My Catalogue of Sensory Delights

I love the taste of:

1. chocolate and white wine on my tongue
2. fresh baked bread and melted butter
3. French vanilla ice cream
4. peaches
5. cherries

I love the sight of:

1. flowers in bloom
2. my children laughing and playing together
3. my children laughing and playing w R
4. R
5. animals running for the sheer joy of it...wolves...horses...those are what came to mind immediately...

I love the feel of:

1. clean sheets on a freshly made bed as I crawl in to go to sleep
2. woven textures beneath my fingertips
3. dirt in my hands as I cultivate ...whatever
4. the skin of my children's cheeks pressed close to mine
5. R's hands on me, in whatever way he comes for me

I love the smell of:

1. honey suckle blooming
2. bread baking
3. vanilla and lavender mixed
4. logs toasting in the fireplace
5. my bedroom when I first walk into it (lots of incense)

I love the sound of:

1. water cascading over rocks
2. wind blowing through tree branches and leaves
3. horses hooves beating out a rhythm as they run and play
4. violins
5. the silence within the silence

Join us for other treats and delights at The Next Chapter....

Full Frost Moon Dreamboard

Now, I did not forget about the Full Moon.  I have been doing work with several people this month that requires both Halloween's energy and the Full Moon energy.  I have been waiting for this Full Moon for weeks now for a variety of reasons.

It did, however, completely slip my mind that I planned to make a collage for this dreamboard...
In my haste to be cleaning and purging prior to the coming move, I tossed out all the magazines I had stashed--they were picked up this morning...I figured I had collected them once--I could collect them again...they were not the 'important' I am saving them for the articles and/or the patterns magazines...just magazines kept for their value as collage fodder.  And I already have several folders full of imagery for that--somewhere around here...as well as having started plenty of collages recently (my Hestia art journal most notably comes to mind) where I have glued things in and haven't done more than that with them yet...

This Autumn Harvest came upon me very quickly.  Too many other things keep?  kept?  clouding up my visions and desires and directions...I have kept up my former full moon dream boards and I know they are still working for me...not to mention, my Vision is Clearing again...

I have been having so many weird things go on w my relationship w R--this is a man I have known and trusted for 9 years now--dating him should not have changed so very much between us--but it has--not in bad ways--in very good ways--but it has changed me as well--not just the relationship--but my entire life this past year--I am far more open and vulnerable.  And where it comes to him, even more vulnerable yet again.  I am extremely protective of my deep core friends--I am protective of everyone, but there is a visible difference at times w some people--I am almost ready to see if we can drive to WV for one friend to deliver him something for his wife.  When it comes to R, it is so much more than that...I hate feeling like I am 17 yrs old and feeling so lost and discombobulated in ways I NEVER felt when I was younger...but R does that to me...

I diverge from task here--let's get back on track....

Jamie asks:


What do you want to bring to life in this final part of the year? Is it time to breathe some fresh energy into your 2009 goals and intentions? Is it time for completion and clearing? Are you already starting to cast forward into 2010? What will you dream of under the Full Frost Moon?

To answer Jamie's questions:

This is the Celtic New Year.  Samhain.  I celebrate the Feast of the Ancestors.  I have tenuous ties to All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  I even co-opt The Day of the Dead in ways, simply because it honors those who have passed on before us.

I have noticed lately, more-so than usual, that this is my time of Beginnings, this time of year.  I am in Nesting phase, yes, but this is when I hunker down and start gestating new ideas.  As I gestate, things begin to happen with me.  With most people, summer is their time to shine and put forth gobs of energy.  Winter is when they hibernate.  

Not me.  Come Winter, I am full of life and energy and ideas.  Never one to sit idle; hence all the knitting and crocheting this time of year too.  This is when all the good stuff comes to me.  As if this is when everyone else has fewer demands, and makes fewer demands of me, and I can express myself more.  I am a Winter Person.  Well, truly, I am an Autumn person, but the snow makes me happy.  Very happy.  (No, in case you're wondering, I do not ski.  Thanks anyway.)

Look.  We are buying a house.  It is strange to say, we are buying houses (yes, plural--this is just the first one) so that we can have more potential to buy an even bigger house where we can all live together.  Sounds strange to say, but, yes, the kids and I are moving to be closer to R while R and I are working the real estate investment angle in order to buy ourselves a much larger house together than we could afford right now...but it's true.  If we wait that one year, we can get a much bigger house than we think we can, and there won't be any of the worry or hassles the way there is now, and we will both be much much happier with the bigger house than if we settled right now.  Plus, we really do need to be that much closer physically right now.  Our house is 1/4 of a mile from his.  There is going to be no real line of distinction between houses after the move. (All that means is it doesn't matter where we sleep, as we'll have access to both houses pretty much at the same time, versus the 30 min drive between us now--which makes his staying here more difficult...due to his dogs, work, etc)   Especially not with all the room about to open up with our (as in the kids and me) house--

What that means is I will have room to spread out and have fabric piled up all over the place while I work on sewing clothes for the kids, clothes for myself, bags for others, and all the other things I do...and I can set my serger up and go to town with it.

What this means is I can set up the dryer table--and have soaps drying and candles curing. 

I have room for canning jars...and the canner to can them now.  

I have a yard where groups of kids do not troop uncaring through/on/over things--where I can plant a garden--where I can actually build the garden I have in my head....

See--one small step and big things happen...

When I bought this current house, I knew I wouldn't be able to do as much--I knew to get here fast I had to give in on a few things, which would delay a few other things...but I also knew that by accepting the delay, things would be much better on the other side...and they are...

So, this month is about expanding and enlarging my dreams....building our Home...building our Family....building the Family business....building my own business....building my own strengths...building our strengths as a family...letting ideas run rampant and free without fetter....

Not to mention, this month is all about NaNoWriMo as well...and about finishing my novel's draft--a really cruddy, really rough draft...but starting (which I did) and finishing the entire process...before moving into editing and polishing and yada yada yada ... one step at a time....

Allowing one process full reign opens so many other processes at the same time...everything is interconnected and interwoven....and my heart is open....receiving...creating...giving...partaking....

As I create on the page, as I toss out all the stuff I have no desire to move, as I make plans for the way the new house will look--be it furniture or paint or removing wallpaper or anything else....as I try new recipes and start walking a Path I have tread the edges of for so long and am now ready to pursue more fully...as I slowly enter into my own, as I take up my own flag and my own banner...as I join and strengthen our family unity and connections...as I soar to ever greater heights...this is my month's dream....

There are so many places to go...and none of them must be reached all at the same time...patience truly is a virtue....

Blessings to all.

A Simple Woman's Day Book

FOR TODAY... November 2nd

Outside my window... lovely, slightly chill, but not cold--there are colorful leaves everywhere--and the squirrel ate the last of our tiny little tomatoes...

I am thinking... today is going to be a very busy day...we are now officially preparing to move (no, no word on the offer on the house yet today)...I have several things to do today for the business...I have NaNo writing to do and I have that story line bopping around in my head...so many things...so many things today...

I am thankful for... today of all days, after the week-end we had together, I am more than thankful for R and for having him in my life, no matter how terrible he thinks he may be for us or vice versa...I love the man and everything else pales in comparison...

I am wearing... my fave slouchy pair of jeans w all the holes and patches and everything else, my dog training AR sweatshirt, also falling to pieces...

I am remembering... how very much I must accomplish in a very short period of time

I am going... to be working my tushie off today on a variety of fronts...and I welcome that busy-ness

I am reading... What am I reading?  I haven't actually finished reading anything else, but I am re-beginning reading 'A Writer's Space' by Eric Maisel, what with the coming move and everything else

I am hoping... that the offer on the house goes through smoothly, that the house inspection goes smoothly, that the packing goes smoothly, that the moving goes smoothly, that I can get things settled enough before the December holidays to make the kids feel safe and welcome and loved 

On my mind... how my fears around driving are hampering things right now, how we are going to manage the move if I turn out to be unable to drive at all, how to manage the move and everything else that goes on, the possibility of driving a rental truck on the week-end w both children in the truck w me--although on a week-end I know R will be driving and not me...but the worry is still solid there...

From the learning rooms...  patience is a virtue... we are trying to find some space, as a family entity (meaning R and me together), to deal w E and her...stubbornness and her unwillingness to communicate--she will communicate--but sometimes it takes so much to get there....

Noticing that... when the time comes, the energy and the desire to get up and do something is strong within me and I am not pushing it to the background--I am actually DOING things

From the kitchen... we made ratatouille for All Hallow's Eve Ancestor Meal...I was very impressed with how well it turned out, especially since it's the first time I ever made it...today?  I was thinking a simple pumpkin broth alphabet soup for E and me....but there are also pumpkins to bake today and to turn into pies or maybe just the custard...

Around the house... things are certainly jumping--I have already been up cleaning and sorting...we put the trash at the curb for pick up before bed last night--and this morning I added another bag to it--laundry is spinning--floors ahve been swept--the bathroom cleaned--all clocks have fresh batteries and are ticking away (my Chinese face clock in the bathroom, the battery died this spring and I never touched it...until this morning...it's good to hear it ticking again--I didn't realize how much I had missed it....)

One of my favorite things... the sales after Halloween...with the little Goth chick so much of what we buy during the October season is used year round...and I love watching E pick new things out for the next year on top of what she plans to use during the year...

From my picture journal...

This was taken right outside our front door--boy--it really has been a long time since i downloaded the pictures off my camera, huh?  This was early October, if I remember correctly...

Manic Monday For November 2

Today, Manic Monday # 187

Most of the U.S. observed Daylight Savings Time yesterday. Is it easy or difficult for you to switch your body clock? Do you suffer from jet lag when traveling?

My schedule is so bombastic lately, I never even noticed the time shift.  I don't think E has noticed it either.  It usually takes me longer to adjust to 'springing forward' than to 'falling back'.  I am more used to weird hours and odd circumstances and not being able to sleep...I don't know why adding an hour messes me up more rather than the losing an hour, but it does.



If you had to pick one place in your town to bring a tourist, where would you go?

What sort of tourist?  Family?  Stranger?  Friend?
Why are they in town?
What are they looking for/looking to do?
What are their likes and dislikes?
Do you mean here on this side of the River--or the other side?
Do you mean where I live right this moment--or where I will be living by the end of the year?
Too many questions...too many options...too many opportunities...each answer revolves more around the person I am taking than on me...



When you travel away from home, do you miss it?


Miss what?  My house?  My bed?  My pillow?  My dog?
Every week-end I spend w R, I think I feel as if I might be missing something...but any time I stop and think about it--I am not.
When we went to WV and back, all I wanted was for the driving to be over.  We stayed at R's when we got back; we didn't come straight back to our house.  Staying at his place was more than fine.

What I miss when I am away is the smell of my bedroom, with all the incense I burn...but I can always bring that with me--since my incense travels well...

Sometimes when I am away elsewhere, I miss the ability to get up and go somewhere else.  If I am in my own house, I can always retreat to my bedroom if I feel like it.  I can get ticked and throw things and not have to worry about messing other people's stuff up.  I can dump my clothes in a pile on the floor and ignore it til the next day if I choose.
But that's as close to missing anything as I feel.  Mostly because this place doesn't feel like Home...and I know it will be here when I get back.
When I am w R, I am Home.  Nothing else really compares to that...
When R and N and E and I are all together--then that is the best thing in the world--and that is the feeling I love to have....

Did You Think I Forgot The Week Of Treats?

Kinda funny that this week was the week wherein Halloween fell, huh?

I am still behind in my reading...that pink elephant...she was a major distraction...however...the pink elephant has decided to go home for awhile.  She packed up her stuff and flew away home.  Oh yes.  In the original folk tales, elephants could fly.  Isn't that an amazing thought?

Treats.

Treats is sort of difficult and sort of  simple for me.  When I have to think about 'treats', I balk.  I've done so much for "me" lately--the new jeans...the new killer shoes...blah blah blah....but those aren't the treats I want or need...
Sure, where the clothes are concerned I am replacing outdated, worn out, unnecessary things...but that's not really a treat.  Fine.  Five inch stilettos are a REAL TREAT for me...wearing them is an even bigger treat...the look on R's face when I pull off some spectacular outfit in those heels is absolutely priceless...so, yeah, treat.

But on a daily basis?  Three treats a day?  When I stopped over-thinking things, I discovered what I already should have known.  I have these things built in to my life already.

What's a treat?
Talking that first call in the morning, hanging up, rolling back over into my nice warm bed and going back to sleep for an hour or so.

What's a treat?
Boiling the water and making that first little pot of tea in my ugly old orange tea pot.  I bought this lovely big white tea pot from Ikea and it's too big to use without a cozy right now.  And I have too many other things on my knitterly plate to knit a cozy for it...so I am sticking with my little orange pot...
The cups I choose to use when I drink my hot tea, that's a treat.  My 'let go let god' cup that I got as a tip for good work doing Reiki sessions at a retreat eons ago.  A hand-made cup I found for a quarter at a thrift store...my little owl cups that R's x and I both got at a different thrift store, also a quarter each (we divided a set between us because we both liked them)...my Archer cup (another thrift store find)...my 'grace' cup (thrift store, you bet), my square black cups with the crackled turquoise blue ombre insides (target these--on clearance)....

What's a treat?
Stopping for no real reason and inhaling and exhaling, deeply and purposefully, while stretching head to toe, arms overhead into head to knee pose and out again...

What's a treat?
Painting my finger nails and my toe nails.

What's a treat?
The ultra-moisturizing shampoo and conditioner I splurged on for my uber-dry and fuzzy curly 'fro...

What's a treat?
Watching the dog roll all over the bed and bark at herself and then going over to rub her goofy butt until her tongue lolls out and she is doing nothing but grinning.

What's a treat?
Reading a story to E, who is normally a spell-bound audience when I do so.
In fact, I love having deep talks with her lately.  She is just full of interesting stuff.  With the elephant situation, she and I ended up discussing pregnancy the other day.  She didn't ask about the things I thought she would: would R and I be getting married, would we be moving in together, would we still be getting that 70s house (ok, so that's the house's nickname at the moment) ...no, ever Miss Practical, E asked me about being pregnant, how it feels, where it hurts and when and how bad, if I'd be in the hospital with her when she gives birth when she gets pregnant when she is older (much older), the difference in my experiences between hospital birth and home birth (I will never go to a hospital again unless forced for the health of the child) and how she has to make that choice herself when she's older...

What's a treat?
Picking on the bird--trust me--it's funny.
Picking on the girl ranks right up there too--especially if she's in a good mood and picks back.

What's a treat?
The sound of my children giggling and laughing...no matter what the cause.
That truly honestly is the very best candy for me.  Nothing else tops that.

What's a treat?
Ok...picking on R ranks up there too--and he always picks back.
But there is nothing better than looking into his eyes and seeing what is reflected in there, the depth of his love for me...swirling between the sea of blue and that gold ring of his...

What's a treat?
Flowers in bloom.  Or in my case right now, my four leaf clover still growing like madness since I moved it back into the house.

What's a treat?
A very long, very hot, very soapy (scented soap bought special for me that no one else can use :-) mostly because she can't reach it :-) ) shower, when everyone else is in bed, no one interrupting, no one noticing and no one opening and closing the door to let all the hot steamy air out so that it seems as if I wander through a clear white languid fog...where both brain and body unwind...

What's a treat?
Burning incense on my personal altar...the smell of that incense infusing the entire house....

What's a treat?
There are so many more left unnamed here....

Every day, my days are full of treats, small, large, meaningless to anyone but me.  But they are there and I love every minute of them...

See what treats others have given themselves here...