Yep, this thing is really looking like a sweater now.

The only thing left? Buttonbands and the collar.

Though, I suppose that I really should decide for sure on the buttons I’m going to use before making the button holes, huh?

Otherwise? I found–this morning, AFTER I finished seaming this last night–my Knit Klips. I know, ironic for timing, but at least I found them. They were in my sewing basket. Not the one I use all the time, with basic thread, needles, and scissors, but in my other basket–the bigger one that has the safety pins, zippers, snaps, velcro, all that kind of stuff. The basket I go into about once a year. Except, when I was packing up my closet, I must have just stuck the bag of Klips in there for safe keeping. You know, the special kind of safe keeping that means it’s so safe you can’t find it again.

My big chore today? I think I’ve finally got my desk drawers organized, even though my cheap little filing cabinet drawers are, well, cheap. (As evidenced by the way they came apart when the blue-tape came off.) Oh, and I baked an Oatmeal Applesauce Cake using my leftover cranberry-applesauce. It looks and smells good, can’t wait to taste it.

And, on that note, I’m going to go dig out the buttons I bought a few months ago and see if I can make a decision of some kind.

Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
2 Comments »

Hey, we have pictures!

As in, pictures hanging on the walls. Nice, huh?

No, this isn’t quite ALL the pictures we hung, but  after a while, while walking around with my camera, I noticed this:

And decided it was time to sit down for a while.

It sure was windy last night and this morning–a tree at our old house fell down across the driveway, so Dad called my brother-in-law to ask him to bring down a chain saw tomorrow to get it cleared away before the closing on the house in a couple weeks. Luckily, it wasn’t a BIG tree, but a few more feet of height and it would have damaged the garage doors–and it would have made it really difficult for my parents to get out of the garage, if we were still living there.

Hey, look–two sleeves!

I got a lot of knitting done on them yesterday, because I had extra time to knit yesterday. Why? Because we had our first (non-family) visitor yesterday … Kim! She came over yesterday afternoon and got the first look around our lovely new home, and then we sat down with our knitting and some of the delicious coffee she brought along, and just … knitted. So nice.

Of course, I tried to do something nice, and sent her home with a copy of Pixar’s “Up” for Liam to watch and … last night, realized that what I’d lent her was the CASE for Pixar’s “Up.” The actual DVD was still in the player. Oops! So, this morning, when Mom and I headed out for a cup of coffee (Saturday tradition, you understand), we swung by Kim’s house to drop off the actual DVD–and then Mom got a tour of Kim’s adorable little house. So, this was fun!

The one problem I have right now? The next step for my sweater is to sew the shoulder seams, sew in the sleeves, and sew up their seams. Except … my Knit Klips seem to have disappeared. You know, those little orange clips that are so handy for holding your knit pieces together while you sew them up? I know exactly where they WERE. As a rule, I know where my things are. I put them away when I’m done with them, so I know where to find them later on. But the move, of course, screwed that up a bit, and while I can find the pin cushion and such that the Knit Klips were right next to? The clips themselves have disappeared.

Darn. I LIKED those things.

Tags: Family, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
1 Comment »

My niece was working on setting up a still life yesterday, and while she was working on it, I took some pictures of my own. I like the reflection of the brandy bottle in the silver tray.

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
2 Comments »

Well, Mom and I spent most of the month of October talking about how much we were looking forward to Thanksgiving this year, because we figured that, by then, we would pretty much be settled, and how thankful we would be for that.

Well, here we are, and yes, we’re thankful.

Tags: Family by --Deb
2 Comments »

Not much of a post tonight. I walked into work yesterday and found out that one of my co-workers–a woman I’ve worked with for fourteen years–had died suddenly from a heart attack on Saturday. She wasn’t one of my closest work-friends, but she was one of the nicest people you’d want to meet. She worked hard at two jobs and was always willing to go out of her way to do someone a favor.

Our company has been in business since 1981, and we have never, ever lost a current employee to the grim reaper, and believe me, this is a record we desperately wanted to keep.

So, you can imagine, it’s been a couple of long, sad days at the office.

Which reminds me … Are You Doing What YOU Love?

Tags: General by --Deb
8 Comments »

Well, except for the fact that Mom’s been wiped out by a cold, and I haven’t gotten any writing done, it’s almost felt like a normal weekend. Of course, Mom’s not usually sick. She’s slept away most of the weekend–which is good for her, but highly unusual–and I really DO have a lot of writing I should be doing, but … I think my brain is still in the “nesting” kind of stage. All I seem to want to do is housework, puttering kinds of things.

Like spinning. I mentioned that I’ve been getting a lot of spinning done. Of these three skeins, just wound off their bobbins last night, one was finished in the old house, one had one of its two plies finished in the old house, but the other three bobbins of singles and the plying of two of them all happened here, just in the last three weeks. The two newest skeins are both Cormo from the Juniper Moon Fiber Farm (formerly Martha’s Vineyard Fiber Farm) share that arrived in September. And, that bobbin of finished, but not-yet-skeined yarn I brought with me? I finished it in August.

So, when I tell you I’ve gotten a lot of spinning done in the last three weeks–along with moving, unpacking, setting things up, and heading back to work? You have to believe me.

(This also explains why I’m not getting any writing done.)

It’s true, it seems a little under-plied, but I’m not really worrying about that. What I AM wondering about is how I’m going to wash it to set the twist. The sink in my bathroom is smaller than my old one and doesn’t actually plug to fill up. Or, it WILL fill, technically, but it’s not a tight seal, so it starts draining just as quickly–so soaking is not an option. The kitchen sink might work, though I’d have to dig out the plug that came with that and see if THAT was a tight fit. (We keep a mesh drain-saver in the kitchen sink that catches odds and ends like oatmeal and stray pieces of pasta when you wash things, and almost never plug it to fill it. The bathtub could be an option, maybe, except that I had to take ITS plug out completely because (1) it wouldn’t release to let the water drain without unscrewing it and removing it and (2) it’s a large, bulbous plug that didn’t let the hair-catcher I always have in my shower do its job … and catching my long hair (and Chappy’s fur) from going down the drain is very important.

I’ve started my next batch of yarn, too, though I can already tell it’s going to be a bear to photograph properly. Why? Because it’s really a dark brown. This is Sheep Shed Corriedale that I got at Rhinebeck in 2008. I figured the dark brown was about as far as I could get from the white Cormo, huh?

I baked, too. I’ve had a yearning for, well, an old birthday cake. For years, whenever I didn’t want to bake a Grandma Cake for my birthday, we’d get one from the Three Crown Bakery. They did fabulous cakes–everyone said so–and my favorite was white cake, lemon filling, and buttercream frosting. (Their buttercream was great–not too sweet, not to plain, just really yummy.) They retired and closed several years ago, but every year around my birthday, I start thinking about that cake. The fact that the “lemon souffle” hand cream I use at night smells not just lemony but sweet and lemony doesn’t help.

So, I tried making my own variation.

Well, it looks pretty, I suppose.

But, my lemon curd didn’t cooperate and came out tough and tasting over-cooked. (Which is to say, not burned, but like it was thinking about scorching when I took it off the stove. And its rubbery texture simply highlights that.) The frosting recipe I tried is okay, I suppose,  but like almost every buttercream recipe I’ve ever tried, it tastes SWEET. Not just “sweet,” but screamingly, eat-your-teeth, diabetic coma kind of sweet.

So, it’s a disappointment. And it doesn’t help that I can’t think of a single bakery around here that I would go to try one of their cakes. The Viking Bakery in Denville makes great cookies and breads, but I’ve never been a fan of their cakes. I don’t know of any other bakeries in reasonable driving distance that would give me a cake close to the one I crave every November … but this wasn’t it. In fact, if it weren’t so wasteful (and if Dad weren’t enjoying this one), I’d be tempted to just throw this away, it’s so far off from what I want it to be.

On the plus side, these loaves of bread certainly look promising!

Okay–got to go check on the pot roast and think about what to do about potatoes for supper … and hope that Mom’s feeling well enough to come down for it. She was really dizzy this morning and I ended up bringing her breakfast in bed, something I don’t know if I’ve ever done before. I even let her use the bed tray that I use as a computer desk so she wouldn’t spill her coffee. (Yes, orange juice would have been more nutritious, but the two sips of o.j. she had yesterday afternoon bothered her sensitive stomach, so … if coffee and toast was what she wanted, I wasn’t going to argue!)

Tags: Baking, General, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
8 Comments »

Remember when I showed you our old front hall a couple weeks ago? See the panther stalking under the table?

Well, the panther is gone, baby, and replaced by this oh-so-perfect replacement.

Libby.

Libby is our Boykin Spaniel sculpture from Stephen Huneck. She used to hang out in the corner of the dining room, but, naturally, we don’t have a dining room anymore. Mom was wandering around, trying to decide where to put her … and … it’s perfect. Almost as if she was meant to be there in one of Huneck’s own tables.

Of course, she has her buddy, the ’round-the-corner dachshund to keep her company. (Not to mention a couple of Chappy’s toys nearby, in case they get bored.) (The dachshund’s name is Em, for Martha’s Vineyard where we got her … back when Stephen Huneck had a gallery there.)

And, why is her name Libby? Back before Chappy was born, but when I knew I was going to get a puppy from his litter, I planned on getting a girl. Since the due date was right about the fourth of July, I thought I’d name her Liberty and call her Libby for short. I even bought a red, white, and blue puppy collar for her … and then the litter was born, and there was only one girl who was already spoken for, and I got My Boy instead. No regrets at all! But when I got this Boykin Spaniel sculpture for my birthday that year, well … the name and collar fit perfectly.

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
3 Comments »

Today’s installment of thankfulness:

1. Good Mail Days.

Today in the mail, I got my copy of Spin Off magazine, a new knitting book to review for Knitting Scholar, and a birthday gift from my best friend. “Use What You Have Decorating.” (Thanks, Dawn!)

2. Chuck!

My very favorite TV show (as you know), just got its official launch date–it’s coming back two months ahead of schedule, on Dad’s birthday on January 10th. Not only that, it’s starting with a two-hour season premiere with back-to-back episodes, and THEN the next night, it’s airing a new episode in its regular time slot. Three new Chuck episodes in two days … I’m practically giddy.

3. More Chuck!

Not only that, there’s a promo for Season 3 up at ChuckMeOut.com with snippets from upcoming episodes AND a whole scene (or close enough) to whet my appetite. You know, because I’m so blase about the whole Chuck thing. I’m telling you, people, you really MUST watch this show. And I’ll tell you right now that there will be a pro-Chuck contest of some sort right here in January.

4. Helpful Friends with Good Links.

Thanks to Sara J Henry’s blog, I spotted this product page at Amazon. Yet, it’s more than that … it’s one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a long time. Be sure to read the “customer reviews” and check out the customer photos. Hilarious. It’s a real product, but, um, what was the manufacturer thinking?

How about these wonderful, grammatically correct Christmas cards? Love them. (Thank you Grammar Girl.)

And, for those of you who ever write? How about this new book from my friend Joanna Young, “199 Ways to Write with Confidence.” It’s based on her blog, so I already know it’s going to be wonderful.

Tags: General by --Deb
4 Comments »

I took the day off from work today, obstensibly so I could relax with the house to myself for a while.

Well, I DID enjoy having the house to Chappy and me, but, um relaxing? Not so much.

However … remember the picture I showed you on Sunday? Of the downstairs that looked like progress simply wasn’t being made?

Well, after my “relaxing” day off, it looks like this:

It’s amazing what a difference just getting the floor cleared and the rug unrolled made!

I got my books organized, too. I know, it doesn’t really look like it, but they ARE. I alternated the horizontal/vertical thing to make them look a little more interesting, and kept to single-files where I could. They’re still not catalogued (Heaven knows when that will happen), and the alphabetization over in the fiction section isn’t perfect, but … they’re more organized than they were! Those 5 under-the-bed boxes, though? I have nowhere to put them. They’re filled with YA books that I grew up with and used to be under the table in our home office, but that’s not an option anymore, soooo….

Of course, the OTHER thing I really wanted/needed to do didn’t work out. I bought a wireless print server so that we could try to consolidate our printers… especially now that I’m two whole flights above them and really could use a printer that I could, you know, print from.

So, the printer we want this on is attached to Dad’s computer. Okay. He’s away at the moment, so I booted it up … he’s right. It takes a good 10-15 minutes for the thing to boot up. But, okay, I occupied myself by moving books around. Started the print server install … and around step 6, the mouse locked up. The keyboard would work, but I couldn’t use the mouse or move forward. Grr.

I didn’t really want to sit through rebooting it AGAIN, so … I tried his second computer. (The one I got him for his birthday in January that he still hasn’t completely switched over to yet.) At least it boots up quickly. I transferred the printer cable to it so I could install the printer’s driver … that bombed out. Apparently that printer is not one of the ones supported by Windows Vista. Uh-oh.

But, wait! Mom’s computer! I’ll install the printer on hers–it’s Windows XP, it should be fine. And it was. I installed the printer, and then ran through the set-up for the wireless print server, and clicked the “install on computer” button on the Linksys setup screen … and, nothing. The setup screen completely disappeared, as if I’d closed the program. Tried reloading it, clicked “Start,” clicked “Install on computer” and … poof.

So … still no wireless print server. Which means that I still don’t have a printer. And I’ve also just discovered that Dad’s slightly elderly, laser, color printer that we can’t afford to replace won’t work on his newer computer. (I wonder if it would if the wireless server was working correctly? I have no idea.)

Still … Chappy’s enjoying having the rug to lie on, and he says he enjoyed having me home, even if I didn’t sit down to relax with him at all until about 3:00.

When Mom got home from Patty’s, she almost fell over when she went downstairs, she couldn’t believe her eyes! I had left a few things for her to do–like emptying out the last couple things in this hat box (yes, it used to have a hat in it), that Chappy thoughtfully pointed out to her. She did, and then said, “I guess this is garbage then…”

Which was all Chappy needed to hear, because he immediately pounced on it. Not BEFORE, mind you, just after she said she didn’t want it anymore.

Which is good, because as soon as he caught it, he started to chew on it.

Apparently it tasted very, very good.

I’ve got the DVDs and VHS tapes by the TV organized, too. Dad was funny the other day when he saw me unpacking the tapes. “Do we still have the machines to run those?” Um, yes, Dad we DO have a VCR. Three in fact. I don’t care how wonderful those DVR things are … we don’t have one, and there’s no other way to record something on a channel different than the cable box!

I’ve even been getting some spinning done. In fact, I’ve gotten more spinning done in the last week than I have in the last few months! I finished the bobbin I’d barely started, have done one more complete one, and started a third. Granted, each bobbin only has about 2 oz on it, but still … it’s been months since I spent so much time with my spinning wheel.

Tags: Chappy, Family, General, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
6 Comments »

How about some pretty sky for a Monday?

I took this just as I left the office tonight.

And this a few minutes later, when we took Chappy out for a walk when I got home.

Pretty, huh?

Tags: Sky by --Deb
2 Comments »

My best friend called me from California to tell me I’m not showing enough pictures of the rest of the house. (Okay, she called to wish me a belated birthday, but she DID make a point of saying she wants to see MORE.) So–to keep her happy … (And with a mention that I (1) took these with a phone balanced on my shoulder and (2) while carrying on what I hope was a lucid conversation and (3) a reminder that the house is  still a work in progress. By our usual standards, it’s a mess. By the standards of the last couple weeks? Doing better).

The view from our window. Note that there is NOTHING behind us but trees. At night, off in the distance, you can see the bottom end of the nearby Hyundai dealership’s lights because we’re really not that far from Rt 10, but otherwise, there’s nothing back there.

Mom and Dad’s room (with a glimpse into Mom’s closet). Their window looks over the garage and to the front of the house.

View from above of our living room. We finally got the book case full of movies and tv shows set up, though it’s a little wobbly on the carpet. Mom went to a hardware store to try to find some of those furniture safety straps to secure them to the wall, but couldn’t find anything. (And, yes, we DO have an enormous behemoth of a television set.)

My very bland bathroom, because she wanted to see. It’s very beige, but has the essentials–tub with shower, toilet, sink … and a medicine chest! (Thank you Home Depot.)

Going down the stairs, Santa waves a friendly hello. No, he’s usually not out quite this early in the year, but it seemed silly to put him away just to pull him out in a couple weeks. So, for now, he’s cheering us on from the landing. I’m going to miss him, come January.

View of the front door from the stairs. (Also the vacuum cleaner, the shopping bags I need to bring out to the car, the pen we block the front door with, leashes, umbrellas, door stop because the door to the garage is on a spring. And … oh yes … someone peeking through the railing.

Once down the stairs, this is the view to the right, into the living room. The second bookcase is set up and my cookbooks are finally unpacked. The rocking chair is still looking for a home, but at least it’s in from the garage. It’s the first piece of furniture I ever bought myself and I love that chair. I’ve sat in a lot of wooden rockers that were incredibly uncomfortable, but this one is perfect. I just wish I had room for it up in my room.

Turning from the living room toward the kitchen–the kitchen table, the breakfront in the corner, next to the pantry with Chappy’s dishes in front…

And the kitchen looks like this–complete with vegetable soup simmering on the stove, a fresh batch of granola, and a chocolate pound cake cooling on the counter.

Let’s not forget the Birthday balloon from my sister, still going strong nine days later.

Here’s the view heading back toward the stairs.

Now, going downstairs? This is the one room that–even though we’re making progress–still looks, well, like we’re NOT making progress. But we ARE!

Dad’s office area looks remarkably neat and clean (a rarity for him). He’s right by the window. If you’re paying attention to the floorplans, he’s right under the kitchen table.

Mom’s area (under the kitchen) is still a work in progress. She’s got a new computer desk, though–a $25 model from IKEA that we bought yesterday and that I assembled this afternoon. The row of short bookcases divides her section from Dad’s. She’s got the shelves filled with photo albums (which always look messy) and books … though the top will eventually be cleared off.

The two chairs in the sitting area? Well … you can’t exactly see the television from there at the moment. (See it there? In the back on the left? And … do you see who else is watching?)

Which makes sense, because right now, Chappy’s the only one who can really see the television.

Okay, Dawn, I hope you’re happy!

Tags: Family, General by --Deb
7 Comments »

Dad found these in his dresser when he was cleaning it out. Not only is it an interesting little bit of photographic archaeology. (Who else remembers flashbulbs? And look at the price! Only $1.29 for the box.)

But the really surprising part? My Dad does NOT take pictures. Except for one, brief Polaroid camera aberration, he basically hasn’t voluntarily taken a picture since childhood, when he used to develop his own film. He’ll take pictures when you ask him to, you understand, and he’ll do a perfectly fine job. But … to have flash bulbs in his dresser?

Well, really, it tells you how long it’s been since he’s HAD a camera, huh?

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
5 Comments »

What am I thankful for today? I went to the eye doctor because my left eye has been feeling like it had something in in for days now. (Okay, a couple weeks.) It didn’t hurt, wasn’t affecting my vision, so–what with the move and all–I didn’t rush over to the eye doctor. But, it’s still bugging me, so today I went.

Turns out, I’ve got a scratch on my eye which, according to my doctor, can feel the same as an irritant. He prescribed some antibiotic eye drops to prevent an infection, but otherwise it should just take care of itself.

It’s good to see that Chappy is relaxed. He doesn’t have a pillow up in my office-room (yet?), but the aghan my Grandmother made me back in the 80s works well, too, don’t you think?

You must watch this wonderful stop-action video. So sweet and life-affirming! They took over 60,000 pictures to make this video!

Oh, my, a Sheep Incognito calendar. Have you seen their wonderful artwork? The idea of all those adorable pictures on my wall makes me giddy.

Cinnamon Eggnog scones? Yum!

Is this what reading is really going to be like in 5 years?

And, wait, there was something else I was going to say … what was it?

Oh yes.

Happy Anniversary, Patty and Mike! Twenty-one years now … your marriage is now old enough to drink.

Tags: Family, General by --Deb
3 Comments »

I hope you’re impressed that, even with all this moving craziness, I’ve still gotten some knitting done. Here are the cuffs of my two sleeves. Like the body of the sweater, they start with a horizontal cable (9″ long) and then stitches are picked up along the edges for the lower ribbing, and then for the actual sleeve. I finished the lower ribbing on one of them tonight, and picked up the stitches for the second one.

Usually, of course, I do my sweater sleeves at the same time, but I’ve got enough chaos around lately, I don’t want to deal with the two skeins of yarn that continually tangle thing, so I’ll be doing these on their own. Just … why not start with both of them at the same place, right?

Speaking of chaos … here’s my room. Now, for one, I can’t quite decide what to call this. My office? My fiber room? My sitting room? So, basically, I’ve got my bedroom, where I sleep and get dressed, and “my room,” where I do everything else. I’ve finally got my computer in here–it’s been plugged in next to my bed for the last week, but this is the room where it will live, so –at least it’s here. That’s what accounts for all those unsightly electric cables under the pretty cedar chest under the window.

The pillow on the cedar chest was made by my sister as a birthday present, because the colors in the fabric reminded her of me … looking around the room, I’d say that’s a yes, wouldn’t you? I hate the pile of stuff in the corner, though. (Well, I hate piles of stuff in general.) And I’m second-thinking the table RIGHT in front of the door when you come in … except that, once you’re in the room, it works there. If/when I ever sit at that secretary desk, it will give me a nice work area … it’s just kind of an obstacle to coming into the room.

Everything is in there, and all the major stuff has a place … the first, crucial step toward organization … but there’s just such a lot of it! I absolutely hate clutter–you know this–so the fact that it is, in fact, cluttered is kind of driving me nuts.

Well, not quite yet. I’m still in the “work in progress, don’t panic” state of mind as I work on getting things put away, but … if I don’t find room for everything to BE away, well … Let’s not talk about that, shall we?

And, it won’t make you jealous if I tell you that cedar chest is full of yarn, will it?

This is one of Chappy’s favorite spots–in the hallway between my two rooms. Here, he can keep an eye on me wherever I am (including the bathroom, which is just behind him)–as well as the hallway down to his grandparents’ bedroom.

The good news is that, after his sad, pathetic, woeful morning of howling and whimpering yesterday when his Mom headed off to work, today he was quiet and more his usual self. Because, yes, when I left for work yesterday, he took it very, very badly. I called twice and each time Dad just held up the phone so I could hear the “Wooooooooooooe, Wooooooooooe” in the background. Poor thing! (Well, both of them–Chappy for being miserable and Dad for having to listen to Chappy being miserable.)

You want to know what’s really exciting?

Look! Spinning! I actually sat down in front of my spinning wheel and spun up some of this luscious Cormo. The most spinning I’ve done in weeks. Woohoo!

Anyway, we’re all working hard on settling in. We’ve actually cooked meals, and everything. I clocked my commute today–going in (going through Indian Lake to work around the traffic on Rt 46 at rush hour), it’s 3.7 miles, coming home the more direct route, it’s almost exactly 2.5. That’s about 3 miles less driving a day than I was doing two weeks ago, when my commute was almost exactly 4 miles no matter what route I took. No complaints, there! Though we need to get the remaining stuff out of the garage so we can get our cars in there. (Finding room for my wooden rocking chair is surprisingly challenging.)

I can’t take a picture of it because my camera’s in the other room and anyway, he looks so disgruntled when I take his picture–like that one above–but right now, Chappy is curled up asleep in my green and pink afghan. I know, they’re not my usual colors, but it’s the afghan my grandmother made me twenty-something years ago and which is serving as a nest for Chappy until I can find him a decent pillow for in here. (Assuming I can find the floor space for it.) He looks so cozy, and is dreaming about something … I hate to disturb him to go say goodnight to his Grandpa!

Oh, and for the record? His bathroom habits seem to be settling in. You don’t really need more detail than that, do you?

Tags: Chappy, Family, General, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
5 Comments »

We moved the red chair in my office today. I know, this looks like a huge room, but it’s about 10×10′, and the chair’s ottoman comes close to the middle of the floor, but still … the chair is in front of the closet now and within arm’s reach of the bookshelves with all the knitting books. (And, yes, I DO have a lot of knitting books!) It’s harder to see out of the window now, but it’s not like it’s THAT far away, and I can always move over to the cedar chest under the window if I want a closer view. The rug in the corner, alas… the one that I had in my bedroom and that I love … doesn’t fit. It’s banished to the garage. I suppose I COULD have it cut down to fit, but since it had a rectangular border all the way around the edge, that seems … odd. I’ll miss the look of it, even if this room does have perfectly good carpeting.

I’ve got all my books unpacked. Granted, right now they’re just shoved on the shelves, but still! They’re out of the boxes and lying flat. I found one paperback that had its back cover torn off, but not as many damaged corners as I’d been afraid of. They won’t always look this messy, mind you, just until I can get them organized. The important thing is that the boxes aren’t piled in the middle of the room any more!

And, look! Food in the pantry. Honestly, I can’t imagine how we would have managed without this.

The family came to visit today. We gave them all chores to do, but then fed them pot roast, mashed potatoes, corn, and the Grandma Cake I baked yesterday. They brought me a homemade floor pillow as a birthday present, too, and helped hang my dresser mirror on the wall.

So far as I know, this concludes the birthday festivities … all of which I appreciate, even if I still don’t quite feel like I HAD a birthday. Too busy, too many chores that needed to be done, but still … lots of love.

And, yes, I might take one of my still-unused vacation days next month and treat myself to a day to just have FUN … kind of a birthday redux.

I can’t believe I have to go back to work tomorrow. I hope Chappy will be okay, considering how he howled when I left for an hour on Friday. I hope he goes to the bathroom like he’s supposed to while I’m gone. He HAS, incidentally, gone several times on the deck–not every time, but often enough that I’m not as worried. He still hasn’t “downloaded” there, which means that he’s only done one of those each day, while on his regular walk, but … that will come with time, I’m sure.

Has this been a relaxing vacation? (Ha! What vacation?) Um, no. Has it been productive? Very. We got an enormous amount of stuff done this week, and hopefully won’t need to do this again for a long, long time. Even down-sizing, we’ve got a ton of stuff!

Tags: Family, General by --Deb
3 Comments »

So, taking a cue from Carole…

Furniture. Furniture is good, right? At least it’s all positioned more or less where it’s supposed to be. And my spinning wheel is out of its bag!

See? I don’t know when I’ll actually get to sit and spin at it, mind you, but that’s not the point, right? That, and the fact that I’m gaining some floor space is an encouraging thing. Even if my area rug is still rolled up in the corner! (In fact, I’m wondering if it’s going to fit in the room at all … I don’t remember the dimensions of the rug.) I’m sitting in my red chair right now, though, so … definite progress.

And then … yes, I know, this looks like a mess, but in fact, this is huge progress. All the different bookcases are lined up along the wall, just waiting for, well, the books. Because, before you can release the books from their boxes, you need someplace to put them, right?

And, what girl wouldn’t love this? A brand new pantry?

Of course, it came in pieces and needed to be assembled–which is always my job. Considering there were no actual instructions in the box, I did pretty well, huh?

Well, okay, I called the 800 number and they emailed them to me. (You’ve got to love the internet, right?) But, still. We’re really very happy with this. Nice quality for self-assembled furniture, even if the magnets to hold it closed should be a tiny bit closer to the edge, because it doesn’t quite connect to the ones on the door. The only complaint is that the latch/lock doesn’t work–that was the sole set of holes that didn’t line up correctly–there’s about 3″ between the lock on one side and the latch on the other door, but since we don’t plan on actually locking it, we’re okay with that. (And, well, the plastic handles could be a little nicer, I suppose, but so what?)

And, one of my favorite parts? We ordered this from Amazon.com, and since I signed up for the Amazon Prime program, the shipping cost me NOTHING. Every other website we looked at for a pantry charged a minimum of $70 for shipping. So–a $185 pantry with no sales tax, no shipping. A bargain!

And, then, there was this.

You know it’s my birthday. It hasn’t really FELT like one (though there’s no question I’m tired enough to feel a year older!), but still, it is 43 years since I made my debut. My sister came down again, and she, Mom and I went out for coffee. (Well, Mom and I had coffee, I had a cupcake, Mom had a cookie, and my sister had a glass of water.) It was the first time that I’ve been away from Chappy since we moved in, and even though we left him home with his favorite Grandpa, he apparently HOWLED, poor little boy.

On the plus side, he made two puddles outside today. That’s a start!

Here’s what Mom found tonight. The baby bracelets from the hospital. Two for her (one each for me and for my twin Susan), and mine. Which, since I was so tiny (3.1 pounds), was actually wrapped around my LEG because that was the fattest part of me.

It’s a little small these days. But, speaking of birthdays and baby hospital bracelets … my sister’s brother-in-law and his wife became a father again … today! We’ve got another November 6th birthday in the family! Welcome little Joshua.

I got some spinning wool, too, as a birthday present. 24 oz from the Sheep Shed that Mom bought at Rhinebeck. Two in a nice, olive green, and one in a lighter green. It will make a gorgeous 3-ply yarn someday.

Sooner, now, of course, that I’ve found my spinning wheel … if not quite as soon as I’d like.

Okay … really tired now… I’m older, you understand, and it’s been quite a week.

Is it really Friday, already? So soon? Where did this week GO?

Tags: Family, General by --Deb
9 Comments »

I’ve had this little porcelain angel for as long as I can remember, though she didn’t survive the move.

Still … since today is my birthday, it seemed like the perfect Eye Candy Friday photo–both celebratory and memorial.

Brought to you by:

Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
23 Comments »

So, let’s see … the house is still a mess, but there IS progress being made.

See? I got my chair ottoman down on the floor! And as of right now, those cubbies are in the closet where they belong. The knitting and craft books are all thrown on the bookcases … they’re at least out of boxes, and I’ll organize them and stand them up later on.

We put the two bookcases I’d had in my old bedroom in the little hallway between my two rooms, next to the wall/balcony/overlook by the cathedral ceiling. It looks like the perfect place for my African Violets and a couple family photos. The actual books may change at some point, but hey…

Unfortunately, when I peeled the blue tape off these little filing cabinets in my office/fiber room, it took the finish right off with it. So they now look just dreadful. I mean, they weren’t expensive pieces, and they’ve actually been sitting in our old garage for a couple years now, but still …

My aunt and cousin sent us house-warming flowers. Aren’t they pretty?

Here’s the view from my bedroom, looking straight across. Looking down is the entrance by the front door.

Chappy’s glad to have his little corner set up. Our chair-and-blanket, his basket of toys, and the ottoman from the living room furniture.

Chappy says he could use a tummy rub, though, please. Though the good news is that, while he refused MOST of the times I took him out onto the deck today, he did, in fact, go twice. That made us all feel much better, and we made quite a fuss! But still, a tummy rub for encouragement couldn’t hurt.

Tags: Family by --Deb
6 Comments »

Oh, people, you have NO idea how tired I am right now!

What time did the movers finish last night? Well, let’s see … they had to go back to our old house around 2:00 a.m. to get a SECOND load of furniture. Yes, you heard me. Two in the morning … our neighbors, old and new, must just love us.

When did they finish the actual moving in process? That would be 4:00 in the morning … eighteen hours after they started.

Eighteen hours.

Now, we can’t complain a bit about the three men doing this move. They worked HARD. They were nice, they were polite, they were good humored throughout, despite being exhausted at the end. We felt really bad that we couldn’t give them the size tip that they truly deserved. They earned it! But, as you know, this move was necessitated by financial need, and considering that the move cost us $1100 MORE than the high end of the estimate, and about the same as a month of our new rent (which is a real stretch to begin with) … the best we could do was making them coffee and giving our sincere thanks.

Their boss, on the other hand? Well … you would think that a person that owns a professional moving company would be able to estimate a LITTLE closer than that. That they would send the four men they said they would, instead of just three. That they would send a truck big enough to hold all the furniture, instead of making that short-handed crew to make a second trip back at two in the morning … and thank heaven that it’s only 2.5 miles back. You would think that, if the owner said he was going to come on the day of the move, that he would … or that he would at least return his crew’s no doubt frantic pleas for more guys or a second truck.

Needless to say, we are not at all happy with the man in charge.

And we are really, really tired. I managed to sleep late this morning … I got a whole four hours of sleep.

Well, almost.

Chappy was WONDERFUL yesterday. Bringing him to the house early, before the movers arrived was definitely the right choice. We set up his ex-pen in the kitchen for when the guys got here, but in the meantime, we sat on cushions in the front window. (You know, before the house filled up with lots, and lots of stuff.) He relaxed. He napped. He was happy, if confused. The only time he barked was when the movers brought stuff right into the kitchen and walked past him.

But … by the time we got to bed … and I am SO grateful for having just rolled my feather bed, comforter, and pillows together, so that I was able to make my bed at 4:15 in the morning in about two minutes flat … By the time we got to bed, he was fidgety. He was restless. Of course, he was the only one of the 7 of us involved in this move that got to nap, but this is what he always does the first night in a strange place. And, since he’s having trouble with stairs and such lately, and our usual jump-on-the-bed ottoman now lives in a different room, I didn’t want to risk him jumping off my very tall bed in the dark. I was certainly too tired to deal with it! So, he got to sleep in his crate last night. Possibly tonight, too, I’m not sure.

Today, though? I can’t get him to go to the bathroom. Now, our old house, his whole life, he went on the deck in the back. Always. Sure, when we went for walks, he would take advantage of the amenities, leave messages and such, but his regular bathroom was a deck. This townhouse actually has two of them, and when he visited on Saturday, he used one as his facilities just fine.

Yesterday and today, though? He sits by the front door, and when I open the door for him to use the deck, he goes outside and sits down. Or runs right back inside and heads for the front door. It’s like house-training all over again. He looked so desperate this morning, I DID finally take him out front, but I held strong this afternoon (and felt like a terrible, mean person), and he did eventually make one, very big puddle. But, since then? Nope. He just looks miserable.

Sigh. I keep telling him that we’re all making adjustments, but it doesn’t seem to help! (And the point of him going on the deck is so I don’t have to take him out for walks just before work, or when it’s raining or snowing. Or so that my parents don’t have to–especially since Mom can’t hold his leash because of her hands. He HAS to take advantage of our simply opening a door for him. A leash and heading out the front door every time is simply not an option.)

So, some pictures? Here you go.

At this point, we’re all wondering why on earth our furniture is so BIG. There were a couple pieces they couldn’t get in at all. Which means that there are a couple things we were expecting to have but don’t … and things that we have that are way too big for the space available. And, um, no money to make changes, so we’re just going to have to deal for a while.

On the plus side, my bedroom–small though it is–is at least set in its essentials. We reworked the furniture arrangement this morning. I’ve only got about a foot between my bed and the closet, and the dresser drawers don’t quite open all the way at the foot of the bed, but at least everything is there. I just have to find my jewelry box for the dresser top, put out a couple pictures and get my mirror hung on the wall, and that room is set. And my toiletries are all in the bathroom where I can at least find them.

The rest? The kitchen? The living room? The entire downstairs where Mom and Dad’s offices will be, as well as the bulk of my books? Um … well …

Okay, really, really tired now!

Tags: Family, General by --Deb
11 Comments »

Well, let’s see … the guys with the truck got here about 6:30 … but are going to have to make a second trip. It’s 8:30 now, and they’ve got a lot of the smaller stuff in, but only a couple of the big things.

And, man, they are TIRED.

On the plus side, I got the living room television set up to play the World Series, which is making everyone a little happier. And my sister’s lasagna was very tasty!

Oh, and did I mention? We’re all tired, too.

Tags: General by --Deb
9 Comments »