MaeLyn's Musings

 I like to make things. I'm not really content unless I have some project or another to be working on. Here are a couple projects I just completed. When JoAnn closed last year, I took advantage of the discounts at the very end to snag some yarn that is usually more expensive than I care to buy. This blanket was made of Bernat Baby Blanket yarn, which is usually over $10/skein, and I got 4 skeins for about $12. This yarn is very soft, but also thick, and so while I started the blanket in May or June of last year, I put it away for the summer because it was too warm to have on my lap as I worked! I picked it up again recently and finished it yesterday afternoon.  I really like the crosshatch pattern, although if I had been smart, I would have used stitch markers from the very beginning to help me keep track of the pattern. The finished blanket is about 4'x5' and will be great for snuggling under next winter.  The second project I finished yesterday is one that I started mor...

I'll be the very first person to tell you that I am not in very good shape. In spite of trying to do 20 minutes of pilates five days a week and walking to and from school every school day, I'm still not where I would like to be. Last week, there was another day when Peter was running late and we had to run to school, and my ankle hurt for the next four days. Somewhere in that time it occurred to me that my shoes might be contributing to the pain. In the past, I have tended to wear cheap shoes. When money has been tight, and the kids have been growing out of their shoes every six months, I don't want to spend a lot of money on myself, and so I go to Payless and pick up a cheap pair of shoes... which end up falling apart in six months. Last winter I wore my hiking boots - my one pair of expensive shoes - almost every day because they were sturdy enough not to fall apart, and they helped keep my feet warm when I was trudging through snow on the way to and from school. But th...

Last night, Hannah went to a bridal shower for one of her Young Women leaders who is getting married in a couple weeks. When we picked her up, she was wearing a gorgeous dress - made entirely of toilet paper (and some tape)! I had to take a picture when we got home. I didn't get a picture of the train, and by that time it was coming apart, but it was pretty cool anyway.

The first weekend of April, I started knitting a sweater. I had a pattern, but I didn't have the right size needles to get the same gauge as the pattern specified, so I had to figure out how many rows/stitches I needed to knit in order to get an ultimate product the same size and shape as the pattern required. (I hope that makes sense...) Anyway, I miscalculated a couple times and had to do some "frogging" (unraveling several rows) and "tink-ing" (unraveling stitch by stitch). I also changed yarns after knitting a couple parts, and had to go back and knit new pieces in the new yarn color. (Anyone want a sweater with bright white long sleeves?) I got to one point and realized that I didn't have the right type of needle to knit the edge and collar. (I was supposed to use circular needles 29 inches long, and I didn't have the right length or size required.) I thought I was stuck, until Peter asked if I could crochet it instead. After some thought and figuri...

This morning we awoke to a layer of white on the grass and the car. It was still coming down as we ate breakfast, but by the time the kids left for school it had stopped, and the sky was blue. I love living in Colorado. Peter kind of looks like an elf in his chosen coat and hat. The coat is actually one of Hannah's... Josh chose to wear layers of about three hoodies, rather than one coat. John wore a regular coat - and two hats, one big knitted one to keep his ears warm, and a smaller felt one on top of that to keep the snow from coming in through the holes in the knitted hat. Is it a good thing my children don't seem to care what others think about what they wear?

This morning when the kids awoke, I heard an early moan. "I don't have any pants to wear" two of my children groan! This fills my heart with much dismay - I just washed laundry on Monday. Do my kids not have four pairs of pants? I try to find some, but I can't. I know that most of them received pants for birthdays recently.  Do clean pants into the hamper go? They haven't been dirty from rain or snow. Do their pants have holes from crawling the floor? That's never stopped them from wearing before. So away to the store I must go today To buy more pants so my children won't say...     "I have no pants to wear today."