The Deathwish of Children

A long time ago (about 4 years come January) Brian and I learned quickly that babies and small children don't have much of a self preservation drive. I mean they eat and sleep but that's about it. They don't get that if they roll over to far on the bed they will rather quickly meet the floor, or that standing on the back of the couch is not the BEST idea they could have today.
Our son, Jacob has always learned fairly quickly that when we tell him not to do something ("don't touch that - it's hot, it will burn you, that will hurt") he stops, thinks and listens - if he doesn't listen, he only makes the mistake once.
Abigail on the other hand has been actively trying to kill herself from pretty much the beginning. Not only does she not listen, sometimes she must get hurt two or more times before she figures out she can't 'beat it.' She was 10 months old when I had to bolt the bookshelves to the walls too keep them from tipping over when she tried to climb them. There was the stairs incident here back when Abby was only 8 months old. I am amazed that the only real injury she has sustained at this point is a burn on her fingers and that was the babysitters fault.
So today we are at the playground and they have a climbing apparatus (at the playground? go figure!) some bigger kids were stepping up (there are about 3 levels - one is about 8 inches off the ground, one is about 2.5 feet and the other is about 3ft up) and jumping down. Abby got bored with the first level in no time flat and then immediately climbed to the top (I am not sure how she got up there all on her own but she did) and said 'jump!' I was standing next to her and had my hands out to which she immediately brush away saying 'no help me!' She looked down, thought for about 1/2 a second and then said 'JUMP!' again. I grabbed her by the arm at the last second because she was gonna jump without my help but it was too high. She was mad I helped her but she only tried jumping from the second level after that. Also refusing help. After she landed, fell back onto her ass and realized that may have been a little much she went back to picking up all the beauty bark and making piles on the play structure.
That girl is fearless. Jacob wouldn't even jump off the second step. He is a bit more timid than his sister in many ways and I don't know if he has more fear, or more sense (I think a bit of both). He has always been a bit less impulsive than her.
I am going to have to make sure Abby NEVER gets the 'garbage bag for a parachute off the roof' idea or I am going to have one helluva hospital bill. On the other hand maybe her chutzpa will get her far in life.

What I got goin' on

Knitting:

Scarf in linen stitch from my handspun.

Lace shawl.

Simplicity socks.

and of course the new obsession.

Spinning:On the wheel some nice roving that will become some nifty color shifting socks

On the spindles I have:

some pinkish/lavenderish silk
Some merino/silk
and some more merino/silk
Toddler Stuff:Abby's newest words: Uh-oh. Thank You. (bringing her total vocabulary to about 3 words besides momma, dada, and Jacob) The other word is Down.

Jacob's newest words: Fabulous. Shit (only once. Mom's fault). Delicious. Impossible. Dork Fish (repeatedly. Dad's fault). Tool (not the hammer kind. also Dad's fault). Adorable (looking at pictures of when we brought Abby home). Startled. Privacy. Herbivore. Pteranodon. Tyrannosaurus.

Which leads me to his imagination. I had dinner with a Pteranodon, a Tyrannosaurus, a dog, a duck, a cat, a bear, an owl and a goose all in one sitting and at one point I was a Pteranadon and a bear.

Goals:

Not so much into the resolution thing but there are a few things I would like to do this year and see no reason not to.

1. I would like to finish a few quilts I have in the works

2. I would like to finish a few bears I have in the works. Maybe make a few more.

3. I would like to get to a farmers market and sell a few things.

4. I would like to get my tummy into shape. I am by no means overweight but I have a bit of a belly from having the kids and it bothers me so I am going to try to fix it.

5. I would like to train myself to keep up with the housework so that I am free to do things like spin and quilt and knit without either a: feeling guilty or b: doing 2 hours of housework first. You'd think I'd have figured out by now that wishing for it won't make the laundry and dishes done and ignoring it won't make it go away.

6. I would like to try to be more social. I need to get out and make it to knitting on Fridays and spinning once a month. Not that hard, I just need to DO it. Besides getting out more will probably improve my mental health too.

Next up: teaching a new knitter.

Crafty Stuff

Spent most of the weekend shopping for Christmas and we are almost done...Just 5 more people to cover...plus I need to finish the socks for someone (ok I need to start them. Yes I do know there are only 11 days until Christmas. I guess I better knit fast). On that note the mate for this sock:Is on hold until said pair are finished.

I made a really cute hat for Jake...I went sans pattern so it is a bit tight on his head but if I remember how I did it, Abby's will fit perfectly (I think I cast on 70). I may just make his Abbys since he really doesn't like to wear it (say it ain't so) and it fits her well (and it has a bit more purple than blue in it - didn't see that in the dim light of the shop).

On Saturday my friend Alexis met me at the craft shop and we bought stuff to make some handbags. They turned out really cute! Here is mine:

and you can see hers on her blog here. I actually finished mine on Sunday as we were running short on time and I am the one that keeps the sewing machine at the end of the day :)

On Thursday I finished filling the cop on my drop spindle so here is hank#3 of my Ring Around the Rosie yarn that will become some socks for me someday...Probably pair this yarn with some black and either use this pattern: or just to a simple sock with black cuff, heel and toe.

Sooo I am off to start a pair of socks...in parting I thought I'd show you the pic I was able to snap of Santa and his Reindeer:

A day in the life of...

...of well, Me. Nothing exciting but I thought it would be interesting (or totally boring depending on what your into) to post about some of the things my job entails...
This morning I had to shove over and hang my butt over the edge of the bed so Toddler The First could crawl in and get comfortable.
A couple of hours later I had to get up and turn on the light for said toddler so he could play with his train set...but the trains were missing and crying ensued. This crying woke up Toddler The Second and so brought her to bed with me and by this time Jake had found a firetruck (with lights and sirens, yipee!) to occupy himself with.
Next up...the hunt for the trains...after everyone was awake and downstairs (oh and I went and started hubby's truck for him in the lovely 16 degree warmth because I love him and he was running late) I went up and tried to find Jake's missing trains, after searching his room, his sisters room, the laundry room, the bathroom, the spare bedroom and my bathroom I found them under my cedar chest at the end of our bed...he has been playing with them most of the morning.
Later I went on a balloon rescue...our entryway goes all of the way up to the 2nd floor so when the balloon was released in that area it was not reachable...ended up grabbing the broom, standing on the stairs, holding onto the rail and leaning way over and swiping at the streamer until it moved over enough for me to reach it all the while being told "be careful mommy, don't break my balloon". 20 minutes it took for that stupid balloon and then he only played with it for 3 minutes...go figure.
I have rescued my daughter from 'certain death' 3x already this morning...she loves climbing up on and standing on tables...we may have to get rid of our 2 end tables all together since she won't stay off of them. And she is lightning quick - anyone out there with kids knows how it only takes the time for you to bend over and pull the cuff of your sock up before they are on top of the fridge.
I 'made' breakfast...we had Cheerios today since Jake requested them and Abby has a fit if she doesn't get what everyone else is having too. She is really bummed when we go for coffee or wine or beer since she (and obviously Jake too) don't get any no matter how much whining, crying and foot stomping there is.
I moved our leather sofa around to make a space for the Christmas tree and Jake loves the new space and had been running around in a 5ft circle exclaiming "I am having so much fun at the playground playing with my friends!" (Must be imaginary friends).
It is now almost 10 am so I am sure we are going to have tons more fun today...maybe I'll finally post a pic but for now I am making my to do list...
I have a couple of fun jobs on the list like cleaning out the diaper pail and the cat box...and I get to go out into the freezing ass cold and put the spigot covers on (better to be a bit cold then to have some broken pipes.) I am also going to check tree lights to see if I need more this year or not (may go to LED if I need to buy new ones)...that should be fun with two curious little ones...

Catch Up

Ok so I finally finished my socks yesterday so I can blog now...plus I had to do that whole mom thing and keep the kids in food and clean clothes. The pic is a bit blurry but it's the best one I have right now: So last weekend we had Abby's 1st Birthday party. It was fun - lots of food and friends. Brian made some yummy meatballs and I made an artichoke dip that I love so much I might have to make it every week.

First we ate and then Abby opened presents (with a little help of course):

Then we gave her cake. Here is the cake before AbbyZilla:Here is AbbyZilla spotting the cake:Mmmmm this is yummy - now can I have a hug?Oh and we can't have cake without playing the 'tummy drums' And then there was the bath...let me tell you something, frosting is made with shortening, which means it's greasy and leaves a nice skin of oil on everything...had to bring the dish soap up to clean the tub when all was said and done.
The biggest hit of the party was the tea set that Brian picked out for Abby - mostly among the boys - the girls were off hammering on the tool bench and playing with trucks (ok they were really putting together a puzzle, but still).There is Jacob pouring a cup of tea for Caden.

Catching up from Camping plus Potty Training Trials

Ok so last week we went camping...we got home on Friday so, here is a bit of an update on what I've been up to during that time.

On Saturday morning we got up and hit the road. I think we were rolling by 7am. We stopped at a rest stop and got the kids dressed and in dry diapers. Brian and I swapped seats and we were off again. By lunch time we arrived at the campsite and started to pitch our tent. Man that thing was a monster. 9x17 feet. Don't get me wrong I LOVED having the space but it is definitely a 2-3 man job to set it up. the best feature of the tent is that it has a hinged door on one side - a total life saver when you are toting a baby around. By the time we got set up and unloaded we were dying hot and so we immediatly got changed into shorts. Don't really remember much more of the first day other than hanging at the campsite...oh, and we went swimming too. Abby's first time in the pool! She loved it...her brother wasn't so sure (never has been).

We hung out on the lawn after dinner and had a grand ol' time...The only bummer was that we didn't have a campfire...you need to use a fire pit at these sites and ours didn't fit...plus it was too windy anyway.
The next morning we all got up and had breakfast...Jake getting ready to head out of the tent in his jammies with his shades on because "a sun's too bite 'or my eyes, Mommy"
At this point my days pretty much start to run together. On Monday (day 3 into our trip) I got the wonderful surprise of starting my period for the first time in 3 1/2 years...Joy. I was not able to go swimming from that point on but that meant I had someone to be sure to get pics!

By the last day we were in the pool Jake let us float him by himself...as long as he didn't know you had completely let go.
Jake had the 2nd ice cream cone in his lifetime thus far and really enjoyed it.
One of the days after getting out of the pool we had lunch and then kids decided they wanted to run around on the lawn through the sprinklers...it was a lot of fun and quite nostalgic to watch them.
Another day Grandpa took Jake and Eve out on his boat...they really loved it and did not want to get off when we docked...until we got to the sno-cone stand.Guess what color Jake picked?
Another evening Brian and I took Jake and Abby to the miniature golf course so Brian could teach Jake how to play golf (Jake had been saying for days "Daddy teach me play golf" it was adorable). Jake even had his own club that we brought with us (I bought it for him shortly after we found out we were having a boy).
I cant remember if he is trying to 'read the putt' or yell at the ball in this picture...he was so darned cute when the ball didn't go in he would say "no, no, no" and then go pick up the ball, set it about 3 inches from the hole and hit it in. I think its funny he didn't do what I expected him to do and just put it in the hole with his hands. While Jacob did not win the day, he did beat Brian on at least one hole.
One of the days we tried to keep up with giving Abby the opportunity to try 'solid' food and for the first time she actually ate it! Not only that but look at that bib! That is at the end of her meal and she was eating sweet potato...that tongue thrust reflex is finally gone! Now we all eat 'real' food at meals!
Another cute one of Abby - She napped in her playpen in the shade and she kept her legs pulled up until she was very deeply asleep - it was rather adorable.I think it was on Wednesday that I went hunting for a geocache up at Dry Falls in Sun Lakes State Park. It was a wonderful hike and climb. See that tiny dark spot near the center of the photo just to the right of the large cliff? that was where we headed to. More than I was expecting to do but so very glad I did it. My friend Krista came with me (she is my sister-in-law's sister and comes camping with the family every year). She took some pics of me that I need to get that I will post at another time. But basically we hiked to a lava tube and crawled through it into a collapsed lava bubble. We climbed up and out of that to stand on top for a spectacular view and then looked for the cache. We did not find it but found the only place it possibly could have been. I have not yet checked the geocaching website to see if it was removed intentionally or not. I left a note in the spot and we headed on back.On Thursday we went to Dry Falls as is a tradition with us. It is a massive dry waterfall and I reccomend ya'll go check out the history sometime, it is amazing.While we were there I found a geocache. Actually I should say Brian found it. It was the first thing he saw and we kept looking because it was so inconspicuous. But after we came back to it and looked closer at it we realized it was a microcache, not a standard geocache. We logged our names and put it back. Spoiler pic to follow so don't look if you are ever gonna search for this one.See that bolt looking thing? that was it. when pulled out there was a capsule on the end that contained a small scroll of paper.
One morning the kids were restless - I brought Abby to bed with us. Shortly thereafter Jake woke up so I put him in bed too...I curled up on the end of the bed with his blanket. It was not too bad and I think I even dozed back off for a while.
Thursday evening we packed up as much as we could and on Friday morning we got up and totally broke camp and headed out. Per tradition we stopped in the nearest town and filled the gas tank and had McDonalds breakfast. Driving back home was harder on us. Brian and I were very tired. He drove the first bit and I napped for a bit until I noticed he had his window down in an effort to stay awake. I tried to talk to him to keep him engaged until we stopped at the Thorp Antique and fruit stand, again per tradition. We wandered the antique mall (I saw a pair of hand cards for 20bucks. I would have been all over them if I didn't already have a pair...I should have bought them for my friend Andrew though now that I think about it. Oh well). Then we walked around the fruit stand part of the place and I picked up some apple butter. Jake was allowed to pick his own snack and much to our surprise he walked right past the many flavors of kettle corn and went straight for the apples. He ate more than half of it too. I took over driving from there. I stopped at a rest stop about 20 miles down the road to feed Abby and change diapers and then we hit the highway again. Thank goodness for iPod's man. It was a really long drive home and it was overcast or raining most of the way.
I think once we were home we pretty much crashed. I know at one point I took a shower and while I did that Brian unloaded the van (I was thrilled!) I pretty much igorned putting anything away for several days though. I did get through the laundry and I worked here and there at putting stuff away.
From the day we got home we put Abby in her crib in Jake's room and she has been sleeping there ever since. I have only had to get up in the middle of the night once to settle her back down. Now we work on getting her to go down at a scheduled bed time.
On Saturday we went to Eldon's 5th Birthday party. It was a lot of fun (even if it meant eating yet more BBQ). Here is the birthday boy with his favorite gift (grandma and grandpa always nail it)
That's a fishing pole in case you can't tell from the pic. He was just elated and thankfully there was not only a lake stocked with rainbow trout in the park but Walmart was across the street so they were able to get him a fishing liscense as soon as he was done opening his gifts.
There was a HUGE playground too and Jake had a ball on that.
How's that for a goofy look? So we have been settled in and Jake has been really liking his sister a lot lately and one night he decided that he really needed to be the one to feed her......until she reached up and grabbed his hair - then he was done with her. So I took over from there. He has been just loving sharing a room with her too. When I bring him to bed he says "need Abby" it is so cute.
The other major undertaking we have been trying since being home (well, since Monday) is we are potty training. We just went straight to underwear in the hopes that he will be more inclined to notice than if he is in a pull up. We did potty sits every 1/2 hour the first day and didn't manage to make it in the potty once. Day two was pretty much the same except by dinner time when he started to go he would say "oh no!" so he is starting to recognize what is going on (instead of making a puddle and ignoring it). Yesterday he went in the potty once on one of our hourly potty sits and then not at all again until after his nap (when he was wearing a pull up - come on people there is only so much laundry I can handle and I am already majorly handicapped in that area). We had one accident after dinner and then moved to a diaper and jammies. Today is Grandpa day, so we'll see how he does - I think I'll send him in pull ups just in case. Between him and the cat I am so tired of cleaning up pee I can't even stand it although Jake is better than the cat at this point (for some reason she gets her front half in the catbox but not her back half). Jake has been telling me his potty hurts him and when he gets up his little thighs have some serious red marks on them so I do believe him. He will try out the potty at Grandpa's today and if he isn't bothered by it we'll get him one of those (ours is a 10 yr old hand me down).
Well this post is long enough. Until next time folks.

Adventure Day

Well, last night after Brian got home we went to REI and took the plunge into the world of GPS. We have talked about it for a while and finally decided to just go ahead and do it.

Last night I read over some of the manual and this morning I played around with it until I had it pretty well figured out.

I got myself to the geocaching site and looked a few up. There was one pretty close to home and while it was in walking distance I decided to drive since it was basically on the way to another one.

I got the kids some breakfast, got them dressed and I made up a few little mini knitting needles with some knitting on them to leave behind in the caches (if you want to take something you have to leave something).

We finally got out the door at about 11:30 so I knew it was going to be a late nap day for Jake. Fortunately the first cache was exactly where I thought it was and I was able to park the car right next to it and not get the kids out of their car seats (really it was only a couple of feet from the car). I was so very excited to make my first find! It will take a bit of getting used to using the GPS device as it only gets you close, but that is part of the fun too - you actually have to LOOK.

Sooo..into the bush next to the car I went...

I found it!

Here it is with it's Camo on.

Open:

All the stuff that was inside, plus my knitting...I took the scented bubbles for Jacob.After signing the log I headed off to Wapato Park to start searching for the next cache. This particular cache is something called a multi-cache where the coordinants to first clue are given and once you find that spot you get coords to the next and so on until you find the actual cache.
We walked around until I realized we were going to have to hike up a small but steep hill. Not easy to do with a 2 year old and 15lbs of baby strapped to your chest. Anyway at the top of a beautiful waterfall in the park with this beautiful view. See that fencepost on the right in the shade?
how about now?:
And bending around to see the side I found the next set of coords!:
We headed down the hill (btw it's even harder to go down hill while carrying both children- even if Abby was strapped in) and started to look for the next spot but ended up passing the playground and that was the beggining of meltdown.
One of the clues said something about walking the plank and there was a dock very close so I managed to get Jake to head that way with the promise of coming back to the playground. I think I searched that stupid dock for 15 minutes before I got the bright idea of actually looking at the GPS and seeing that I was WAY off of where I needed to be (there was another dock on the other side of the lake). I decided to stop my search for the day and let Jake play on the playground. On our way back we were followed...
Make that chased:
I kid you not this damn goose was inches away from us and wouldn't leave us alone until he saw someone else at a picnic table with food. Aparently someone has been feeding the critters cuz they are are pretty fearless and bold around people...plus poor Jake- that thing was as tall as he is.
Anyway he got to play for a while and then we loaded up into the car, headed to the store, grabbed a few things for dinner and headed home.
I got Jake some lunch and then put him down for a nap around 3 (he usually goes down around 12). Got a break for about an hour and then it was time to start dinner...I made some yummy yummy mac n cheese from scratch...I use the Fannie Farmer recipie with WAY more cheese than it calls for but this time I used blended up fish cracker for the topping (rather than bread crumbs with butter) and that was absolutally the way to go. I reccomend it.
Anyway that was the day of adventure we had. Hopefully the cache will be worth going back to find another day.