notes

I've been home sick, trying to get over a sinus that has taken my (physical) voice.  Esme has been quite good about it - although Mom can't talk or explain as much as she wants me to.. it sounds like a goose honking when I try to do more than a whisper.  She is coughing some randomly and then seems perfectly okay for hours at a time.  She has tucked toys into my bed and keeps asking if I am all better yet.  I've mostly been trying to stay warm, sitting in the bed knitting and watching movies, sleeping when she allows me to and/or I just can't stay awake.  Mark has been very supportive - giggling at the voice, but that is natural - and he cooked a ginger porkchop for dinner that was excellent.  We looked all over for a movie but realized we didn't have a copy of it...watched something similar.  I've nearly worn a hole in my right index finger - knitting on the larger blanket while wrapped up in the smaller one.  I woke up a few minutes ago and my entire right arm was not responding properly, had wrapped it in a blanket and cut off circulation but it did not feel asleep - just not moving when asked.  That was a little scary, it lasted for about a minute moving only the hand muscles and not the finger ones.  I've been knitting all week, I'm sure that has not helped.  I worked sick a few days earlier in the week because I knew until my voice went I had better be there... was so tired Friday that when an order was not going to be able to be made (wrong electrical specs for what customer wanted) I wanted to crawl into a corner and sleep until my brain could figure out how to settle the matter..... the customer was understanding, they knew the electrical spec they needed was odd for the size - so it could have been worse.  We did lose the order, though.  I was too tired to try to look for some other company that could fulfill it.  In the better light - if I had not been there, it would have been Monday (and delivery date due) before anyone knew the electrical spec was wrong... so there was reason for me to be there just to point that out and refund the customer before they became angry.  *trying to see the bright side* 

bits

Esme had a discussion last night about she is 'just right size' but 'still kid' and she wanted to grow up so she could be big and be a mama, but she didn't want to be any bigger either - because she didn't want to wash her hair and she was still little.  She said someday she would use the big bucket and wash her hair just like a mama like a 'shower' - but for now, she will use the little bucket and cry.  *ha*  I think it takes her seven of her little bucket to get the soap out and she could do it so much easier otherwise... but she hates doing things 'new' when she has already latched onto something, stubborn?  Yes.

We also discussed what 'fire' and 'to fire something' was - she told me the definition when she said 'fire' and threw a handful of bubbles at me and I said it didn't look like fire.  'No mama, there is fire, that is fire (cup her hands around something) and there is fire, to throw something at like this (toss something), that is just like that.  You understand?'  *ha again*.  I then said I knew that - we call that two meanings, like no, no, no is three no-s... but she really only had one nose.  She laughed.. and then said she had two noses... after which I identified nostrils again, nose holes - compared to 'whole nose'... which she also thought was funny but didn't entirely grasp.  Then I asked her what should we call it if we 'fire' a batch of fire through the air?  She laughed again, and thought it was all a good game.

note: I remember telling Mark a while back that with our Poofball kitten being all sorts of colors, and Daphne puppy being all other sorts of colors.. and my bean collection being all colorful and spotted and streaked - we must just have a penchant for spotty colorful things.  That is true...  And then yesterday as I am trying to combat Esme's cold getting ahold of me (which it is, sort of) I noticed in the mirror I was wearing a green knit hat, a blue and white variegated wool waistcoat and crazy patterened fabric scrap slippers all over the house like a gypsy... but I was warm, and colorful, and spotted and streaked everywhere myself ;)

 

The Daphne puppy in question, in her favorite place yesterday.  She is growing, as well.

run by post

 Esme has a cold - she is playing my computer and pretending a lot.

This is what I've been still working on - using up scraps... need to buy a skein or two
It has gotten very cold,and knitting under a blanket is nice - although I really want to just sleep.

work until very late tonight, and earlier tomorrow...probably won't get on for another few days?

Santa and bits at the end of the weekend

.We saw Santa at our local home improvement place yesterday - where I happen to be a plumbing consultant during much of my week...

 Watching Christmas trees, houses and carousels

 Miss Judi, getting an explanation about Santa

 Esme seeing Santa and freezing... but only momentarily.  I think there was also a line, and she was trying to decide how to feel about waiting.

 Santa, look, that is my Grandma!

She sat on his lap and told him about the things she had written in her letter.  I had a hard time hearing all of it because there was a fan going - and I got a couple of eyebrows over something I did not hear, but she seemed very happy he had understood the giraffe and spaceship ideas.

 Candid shots from the triplets that were there before us, we caught one of the elves yawning on the job.

Cuteness Wars.  What a scowl!

We hope to work more on the extra atmospheric vehicle today.  I have a few little sewing things I could do - have to get ambition to work on those or to start something new.  I have been looking at lots of sewing patterns but only slightly inspired, and nothing enough to set to fabric.  I was slightly depressed yesterday by more problems with my Minnesota family, but there isn't anything I can do except give them some advice and then try to stay away from the topic.  It has been raining for several days - warm, not cold... but still, depressing weather does not help.  I'd like to have some sunlight.

I took Esme's measurements today - since she has turned five.  She is 21 w, 23 chest with a 25.5 inch length from outside hip to ankle.  She is 44 inches tall, and about 44 lbs (Mark used the fish scale).. she said that was fun and she was very strong and Daddy was very strong for picking her up.  The patterns I am currently using for her are a size 5 vintage pants pattern and a size 6 vintage dress pattern

This is Butterick 4655, which I do not own but was the only one I was impressed with during my search today.  I have something that will do this already in my collection.  I'm not sure what draws me to this one -- square collars have always done well on Esme, but I do not often use them anymore, as they are much more difficult to set the facing on.  I know I am also drawn to that golden yellow color often - but it isn't Esme's color, hardly anything is a 'bad' color for her, but blues and greens and purples seem to be the majority of her wardrobe.

 Up and Away book, 1949 - we have been reading this before bed and the pictures are gorgeous.  The writing is just above Esme's level, she knows a lot of the 'small' words but needs to take her time so she doesn't say 'far' is 'for' or 'was' is 'went' etc..  That is good to have her pay close attention (when possible, isn't always), stretch, sound things out etc...

Esme and I made a map of the house on paper 'just like Electric Company' today, and went around placing stickers and using a pen to mark where that would correspond on the map.   ie: by the refrigerator, on the stairs, at the edge of the bathtub etc.  Then, we backtracked and put all the stickers back onto the map where they had been in the house.  We hung it up on her wall, and she thought it was a great game :)  I loved watching her gears turn when she tried to figure out which was the kitchen sink and which was the bathroom sink... and three times she forgot what the toilet was in the map - but stood there and worked it out from memory at least once for herself.

message bits

We've been hearing more and more about Esme's 'brain'... today in the WalMart she said she could not be still because she had an 'exercise' brain, and I would put my arm out and she would grab it and pull up and up and up and that is exercise.  I told her I'd rather not.. she is quite heavy, now.  She said the blue bucket was 'just what I've always wanted', and 'perfect'... She did not want to be 'bumped' as I was trying to lead her along in busy crowds, so I asked her to be moving her feet along and she said both of her hands were full, but her feet were not - so she could move her feet, but slowly, for one two hands were full.  *roll eyes* They were 'full' with a spoon and a sample cup of yogurt.  I sent Daddy a text message to tell him where we were and she said 'Message?  I see that message here, ok, see that message.'  I showed it to her and she read the words 'bread' and 'bakery' but could not read 'ready'.  She remembered it was Daddy's birthday and told Grandma that very well when she got into the car.  Grandma had left a coat in our car and she asked me if she could go tell Grandma that she forgot her coat... but it was a gift for Daddy, so that was okay.  She was counting animals out in the fields and doing a very good job - she counted twenty cows that I happened to count for 'checking'.. and she was right - it didn't even seem as if she was really counting it might have been a lucky guess.  She also met a slug on the window of our house - and said it was snail, which was very close - then she came upstairs and told Daddy all about the animal that had two tiny eyes and it was wet and we do not eat them, we talk to them, and they talk to us back.  She has also focused on the Wild Kratts games on pbskids... with creature power, and suits of animals like that, she has to get the animal plates, has to get them all.  She calls them 'wall tracks' - and I had to have her show it to me on the screen to know what she was talking about.

Happy birthday to our lovely Daddy and my husband Mark. 

birds and peas

I'm working on more little birds for the shop. I have a set of bluebirds and a set of chickadees nearly done.

This is the wreath I brought home from work - Esme says it is 'beautiful Christmas.' It smells nice, too! 

Wando sweet peas I am selling a few ounce packages of these 

as I got a lot of them from a local vendor. 

I'm including one of the little birds in each package, as well.

Tomorrow is Mark's birthday, and also the 'visit Santa' day at my work - I have the wekekend off, so we are taking Esme and Grandma out to town.  I hope to get some of these peas in the ground in my garden soon as well, it says they can germinate in 40 degrees and above, but will take longer to do so the lower the temperature is.  They are very cold AND very drought tolerant.