this new year

it's the 10th and this is my first post of the year. typical. this is probably just going to be a ramble, stream of consciousness, what-we've-been-up-to sort of post.

yesterday was the 9th. a year since scotty's mom passed away. he's been quiet. and i've been driving him mad i'm sure with all my "what's on your mind?" "do you want to talk?" stuff. i'm hoping i'll be able to just leave him be. let him come to me. but that is hard to do. i'm trying.

the kids are having a good 2008 so far. they loved the snow we had at the beginning of the year. they've also loved the warm weather of the past few days. we went to the park both monday AND tuesday. it gives me spring fever. but i tell myself it will get colder before it gets warmer and that is okay so long as i can stay inside. but i love those spring-like days. the sunshine was good for us all. and the exercise.

exercise. i need that. i've put on my winter layer much quicker and heavier than usual. i've been boredom eating. yikes.

been going to the library about twice a week lately. i could easily go more if it weren't cold. i could live in the library. the kids love it. reason we've been going so much is that my mom's computer crashed and didn't get fixed for a bit. it's fixed now. i'm using it. but we don't use it much anymore. waiting to put an extra one in the other room that isn't work related. so now we have all the books with all these different due dates. i'll request books as well and they come in and i go get them...more different due dates. so that means more library time...or just renewing. 2 weeks is simply not long enough to keep a book. in charleston we had a month. a whole month. it was glorious. we would leave there with 5 bags of books knowing we had an entire month to enjoy them. here, i'm having a hard time getting out of that habit and try to keep it to a 2 bag minimum. samuel and i are the ones who usually do the most book picking. sadie and silas like to play with all the toys. lately they've all been more interested in the computer area since they haven't had one to play on much lately. i'm thinking when we get moved that we might go back to just using internet at the library. maybe. maybe not.

we've enjoyed having cable now. since a few days after christmas when my mom got it installed. there are a lot of really interesting programs out there. i had not been looking forward to it being on all the time (as it is when you haven't had it in forever). but i'm adjusting to not hating it and actually will watch some of the more interesting things that come on. i like vh1 for all it's 80s music and the rockumentaries (sundance is good for that as well). i like the comedy channel and the sci fi channel (big surprise there). we've been watching a lot of "ghost hunters" and the like lately.

samuel found a book on chemistry and he's been doing some experiments. he's really excited about learning all that. he couldn't believe i didn't know so much of it. he said "didn't you have to learn this in school?" to which i replied "exactly."

christmas?? hmm, family, food, chaos...oh my. samuel's been really into his comics as usual...BUT with renewed excitement since he got some copic markers for christmas. score!! silas has been enjoying all his new video games. sadie got lots of toys and clothes and makeup. all girl. all the time. she got a new baby doll as well. hadn't wanted one in a long time, but she asked for one and she is really happy with it.

what else???

oh, i've been learning macrame!!! it started when my friend jess from the homeschooling group brought hemp jewelry making supplies to the christmas activity get together. it felt familiar. i love making jewelry and this is one method i'd been wanting to learn...but why did i feel like i knew it already. i got home and got out this little kit i've had forever that i only made 1 bracelet from. i had not packed it away in storage because it was small and i brought several of my easy-to-do-in-a-tight-spot art supplies and jewelry making stuff. this was in that. turns out, it used the same knotting techniques.

anyway. so i got the book that jess had brought with her from the library and a ball of hemp twine and went to town. bliss. i remembered my other friend nancy saying that day at the homeschooling group that the knotting was all macrame. i filed that away. that was important information. my mom saw me doing it and she concurred. macrame. she used to do it all the time. you know, in the 70s. those long hanging gardens and glass table tops suspended in that magical weave of knotted cording.

okay, i learned lots of cool stuff. pretzel knots for sure, that was the one i was aiming for. i mastered it. i love it. but i wanted more!! i wanted bigger projects, something sculptural!!!

macrame books. they had them at the library. i had to request several to be transferred but i did come home with one and i've been soaking it all up. and, it just so happened to be written by dona meilach. i read her work when i was in beginning sculpture. cool.

okay, so that's my year so far.Share