About Violet (far from the "shrinking" kind)

Today is Violet's birthday!

Because of her job as rector of a women's dorm, she is in the throes of Training New R.A.'s. Then comes Move-In Weekend, Freshman activities (she calls them "the babies," as in, "Mom, the babies are coming next week!") followed by Opening Football Weekend ("wake up the echoes, cheering her name" will give you a clue as to Which university we are talking about). Since she is in the midst of the four Most Stressful weeks of her year, I don't know how she is celebrating. I'd be glad to make her a cake, if I could find her...

Right out of the box (if you will) she was feisty--a drama queen to the max. The best big-sister ever, inventing fun things to do. A daughter of which to be ultra-proud. She loves the Lord, and loves her family. Just an all-around Quality Girl.

So, kiddo, wherever you are, running around campus, have a wonderful day. And would you please send those game tickets our way?

Conversation in the Dugout

Alvin Fernald (aged twelve) talking with his thirteen-year-old baseball buddy last week:

Buddy: Dude, how old is your Mom?

Alvin: She's fifty-one.

Buddy: Dude!

Alvin: She had me when she was thirty-nine.

Buddy: Dude! My Mom's not thirty-nine yet!!

Sigh. Some days I feel older than others.

A Piece of History Washes Ashore

"On a [late fall] day when the sea was rippled
By a soft and gentle breeze
A ship set sail for a harbor laden
To a port beyond the seas.
There were fond farewells and loving signals
While her form was yet discerned,
But they knew not 'twas a solemn parting,
For the ship has never returned.

--"The Ship that Never Returned"--Henry Clay Work

Although Barry Bonds is All Over the News with his home-run record, (and all of the controversy surrounding....) I found this article much more interesting. Maybe you are too young to remember this (it happened in 1975), but I remember my horror that this kind of thing still happened. I understand why sailors have a great respect for the sea:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1877970/posts

Gordon Lightfoot memorialized this event in song:

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they called Gitchee Gumee
Superior, it's said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty.
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early
.....
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed,
In the Maritime Sailors Cathedral.
The church bell chimed till it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.

--"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"--Gordon Lightfoot

Last Week's Projects

Yippee! I finished binding my black-and-white quilt with bias-cut striped fabric. It also looked very cool on the back side:
My dishcloths were in shreds, so I found all my cotton yarn. I looked up a website here to get a few cute patterns. Here you see the Pear Cloth:

I made a plain one out of a partial ball of green variegated, and last night I began a basketweave in yellow (while watching the movie Rebecca:

We are so excited here because *both* Forget-me-not and Lily are expecting babies in March! So I dragged out seven pieces of flannel that I had bought at a $1.99 sale at Jo-Ann's. I cut them to size and hemmed them up Sunday afternoon:

Saturday we traveled to Charming's mother's home for a party to welcome our nephew and his best friend home from Iraq. What a special time, rejoicing that the Lord has brought them home safely.

Swimming was the order of the day for the Cousins (Alvin Fernald in the middle, Blackeyed Susan along the side in the ponytail, Don Quixote beside her):

I preferred sitting in the swing, listening to the guys. I usually try to be in the vicinity when Music Breaks Out (Charming in the plaid shirt):

A very full day of sun and food. No talking on the two-hour trip home--snoozing was the order of the night . We absolutely dragged ourselves out of bed for church--the reason I try not to have a Big Night on Saturdays. But absolutely worth the trip--Charming saw brother and sister friends from his growing-up years he hadn't seen in twenty-five years or more. Family is the coolest!

A Faithful Friend and True

Alvin Fernald had taken care of a guinea pig that belonged to a missionary family while they were overseas for six months. We returned Gracie to her family last Saturday. Unfortunately, Gracie stopped eating, and passed away last evening. Corduroy (shown above) came out of semi-retirement to comfort Alvin.

I looked up this information here:

"Usually, the first signs of illness in your guinea pig will be a loss of appetite and lethargy. Although not all illnesses affect the guinea pig in the same way, if you see your cavy huddled in the corner of the hutch, refusing to eat or drink, it is almost always indicative of a serious affliction. Being herbivores, guinea pigs eat almost constantly, and metabolize food very quickly. If, for any reason, they stop eating, it should be considered a very serious condition, as the guinea pig could die in a matter of hours. Some illnesses can also cause diarrhea, which is even more serious. Diarrhea can dehydrate a guinea pig very quickly, which can also cause death if not treated right away."

Rest in peace, Gracie.

You Know You Need a Haircut When...

Parentheses have Landed on your Forehead.

Everybody Clap for Barbie

I got my mammogram today. This finishes my yearly exam/bloodwork/pap/mammy thing. Only I missed a couple three years. [WHERE does the time go?]

Okay, so you can say "shame on you" before you clap.

Have you done your yearly thing yet?

Wednesday update:
I received a letter today: "We are glad to inform you that your recent mammogram is Normal." Happy day!

Show and Tell Friday

Forget-me-not put together this patriotic puzzle that Charming brought home from Cracker Barrel. I am going to use it for the rest of the summer as a "placemat" in a centerpiece for my cluster-of-flags-in-a-jar and candles:
I really must brag on my two puzzle-experts, Johnny Tremain and Forget-me-not. They had the same second-grade teacher at a small Christian school. Charlotte had been a missionary in China for eight years, and so she was Not At All Traditional when it came to teaching second-graders. When the children finished their seatwork, they were able to go to a station where a 1000-piece puzzle was always "in process." No one told her that seven-year-olds are not capable of doing 1000-piece puzzles, and no one told the second-graders, either. Now when we are doing one at home, it is like second-nature to these two. Forget-me-not is *so* good that once the puzzle is about half-done, she looks at the shape of the space and then looks over the pile of pieces and chooses one. She hardly ever, ever is wrong on the first try. Johnny Tremain is the Speed Person of the team.

I'm not sure when this week that Alvin Fernald took some scary photos of himself, but I found them today. The scary part (to me) is not the face he makes, or whatever he had eaten, but look at the size of those TONSILS. I'll have to investigate this further: So fun for me: Finally getting to the quilting on a gift-quilt, and look at that Fuh-Hab-U-Lous backing fabric with lush roses:

Thanks to Canada Girl for hosting Show and Tell Friday.

Validation--Yes, I *Am* Cool!

I

Rock!!

Check out my other blog to see that I've been awarded the Rockin' Girl Blogger award!

(I can hold this over my kids' heads forever.)

Finished Project

I finally finished my five-bag project from LAST summer. Here is the bag I made for Violet: Inside, she has lots of pockets to use:

The bags I made for my sister and my daughters (and -in-law) all turned out bigger than they looked on the pattern. Lily and Forget-me-not use hers for diaper bags, Blackeyed Susan for going to concerts (holds water bottle, camera, and Everything Else) and my sister used hers for a trip, like a carry-on! She told me it just matched a blazer she had bought, so that was fun.

Violet lives 100 miles away now, and she asked me for my copy of last year's phone book, which I have stuck inside her bag, and there is still plenty of room to put things for a weekend away...

These bags were so fun, putting three or four funky fabrics together for fun details. And, it is nice to have Finished Something.

Last evening I basted a quilt, part of my Two-year, Five Quilt project. Here's how it stands:

--Five quilt tops finished

--Four basted

--One quilted

All since January 1st!

I also finished a yo-yo project this week, which still has to be kept "under wraps" because it is a gift. Next on the list--a laundry basket full of fabrics and apron patterns. I just can't get a handle on Where to Begin that project...

Later today, I am taking off to retrieve my two youngest offspring, who have spent the last nine days on vacation with their grandparents. The week has been fun and relaxing without them, but life is always better (for me) at home than anywhere else, so I am looking forward to having them back!

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

"Aunt Docia's dress was a sprigged print, dark blue, with sprigs of red flowers and green leaves thick upon it. The basque was buttoned down the front with black buttons which looked so exactly like juicy big blackberries that Laura wanted to taste them."

--Little House in the Big Woods, pp. 142-3

Whenever I read that passage, I think about two very special buttons in my mother's button box. They were a winey-plum color and they were shaped like raspberries. They were my favorites, and I had visions of owning them when I got older.

Mother's button box was one of those round fruitcake tins. Most of the buttons were ordinary, ripped off of a garment that was being sent to the rag drawer. Others were more fun; I remember a couple of rhinestone buttons, and a number of more colorful ones as well. There were only one or two of many of them--others had four or five.

I firmly believe that every woman should have a button box. They are a wonderful rainy-day plaything for children (over three years old, of course!)--I spent many hours just running my hands through the pile, over and over. Very therapeutic, I think!

When we had to break up housekeeping for my parents five years ago, I was delighted to find the button tin in the closet! But, lo and behold, when I opened it, it had a few packages of bias tape and that cheap lace stuff that is supposed to be used in hems. Not a button appeared at all in the entire house! I asked Mom about them, and she couldn't recall when or what might have happened to them--and my two raspberry buttons.

Sigh. But I transferred my own button collection to my Mother's tin, and now my grandchildren are enjoying playing with it.

I recently went thrifting, and found a few cards of vintage buttons for just a quarter apiece:
Nothing shaped like raspberries, mind you, but fun! Besides the button box, I keep a green Mason jar filled with white buttons--I like the look, sitting in my sewing room on a shelf.

My find-of-the-week was a number of Grandmother's flower garden blocks, some without the outside row of squares:

Forget-me-not is making a Grandmother's Flower Garden, but hers will have more of a 1960's feel than the 30's feel of these squares. Sometimes I think it is sad that these squares sell rather cheaply--the large ones were $2, the smaller $1.50--but then, you can never get enough money for the work that is put into a handmade quilt. And, even though the owner's (descendants?) sold the squares because they had no use for them, we get to enjoy them!

Is there anything special in *your* button box? Why don't you pull it out the next rainy day?

Word Play

Aargh, me hearties--my mind is wanderin' today, about words and such. One pair is "hearty" and "hardy." I've seen both used with the word "appetite," though I would probably only use "hearty." The dictionary says that Hardy means "capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure; sturdy." Like a having a Hardy Constitution, or favorite late-summer Hardy Mums. As well as, of course, the Hardy Boys, who enjoyed both Hearty Appetites *and* Hearty Laughter....

There are several definitions for the word "hearty:"
--physically vigorous; strong and well (as in Hale and Hearty)
--substantial, abundant, nourishing (as in a Hearty Meal, tho' if you use the meaning of "abundant," you might get away with Hardy Appetite!)
--warm-hearted, affectionate, cordial, jovial (as in a Hearty Welcome)
--genuine, sincere, heartfelt (as in Hearty Approval or Hearty Dislike)
--exuberant, unrestrained (as in Hearty Laughter)

Then there is the definition--a sailor (aargh, me hearties!)

After thinking about Hearty/Hardy for awhile, my mind wandered to the word Mum (probably because it is time to buy Hardy Mums).

We have the term of endearment for "mother," from the Brits--how much do I love visiting blogs where the description is "mum to four," or whatever.

Mum can also mean silent, as in Keep Mum--remember Loose Lips Sink Ships! She was mum on the subject--is this word a noun, verb, or adjective? Maybe all of them?

The flower--of course, *mum* is an abbreviation for the word Chrysanthemum--always a biggie at spelling bees. Isn't the royal Japanese throne called Chrysanthemum? So cool.

Chrysanthemum reminded me of one of Joe Hardy's classmates in school--a girl of Greek extraction named Xrisanthi (pronounced Chris-on-thee). The *X*, pronounced "chris" is the same X as in the Chi Rho symbol for Christ. See an image of the Chi Rho here.

When I was little, I called the Chi Rho the P-X, probably because my sister married an Air Force guy, and she shopped at the B-X. Then I thought that the P-X was also a symbol for Pax, the Latin word for Peace (they still had Latin Mass when I was little). Certainly any symbol that meant "Christ" would also mean "peace."

So now, at nine a.m. on a Saturday (now I'm thinking of the Billy Joel song "Piano Man--"it's nine o'clock on a Saturday"--only he meant nine P.M.) and I'm totally confused about Words and such. And the front porch is calling--a gorgeous, gorgeous morning. So I will follow its Siren Song, with my hearty/hardy appetite, and maybe go get some hearty/hardy mums as well!

And Try to stop Thinking.

Check Out This Fun Contest!

Mrs. U over at Making a House a Home is celebrating her Blog Anniversary by giving away some very cool prizes!

Go on over and check her out!

Week in Review

Grands getting cool in the pool:
Pretty thrift store plates:

Two more "state" plates. Charming is from Michigan. I don't have any connection to Arkansas, but the old-timey green pattern goes with my vintage dinnerware, so I had to have it:

Pretty blue dish to hold three yellow candles:

Finished quilt top with NYC theme:

Here is a close-up of some New York squares. The observant among you will notice the IU square--yes, IU is still in Indiana! The recipient of this quilt is an IU alum:

Another close-up. I just love the Fireworks fabric in the outside triangles:

I am moving right along with quilting Number One of Five quilts in my two-year project. This finished quilt top is Number Five of Five. Yippee! All since January 1st.

This morning I *found* the public rooms of the house under a Hansel and Gretel trail of toys that the grandbabies hid from me throughout the week. I think I saw all four everyday--now *That* is a great week!!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

My Daddy turns 85 today.

His birthday was always the first "full" day of summer, and every year, when we greeted him in the morning, he would say, "Winter's comin': the days are getting shorter!" (very funny in the days pre-air-conditioning...) His birthday also always fell the same week as Father's Day. That's why you didn't see a post on Sunday about How Fabulous He Is.

The story goes that his mother went to the circus the day before he was born; then went home and went directly into labor with him. "Loved the monkeys so much, she wanted one of her own," Daddy says. He was born in a little country house in Huntington County, Indiana. My grandma told me that, in the 20's, you never left the church sanctuary to nurse your baby; neither did you bother covering up. She told me you just "whipped it out, nobody paid no mind."

Daddy had the reputation as a wild boy. My favorite story is how he and a friend put an outhouse on top of the bank building downtown. My question was always, Why? but then, I'm a girl, so I guess I'd never understand, anyway.

Daddy was a fly-boy in WWII (dubya-dubya Two--The Big One), so I've heard a lot of stories. He came home to his wife and two babies, and made a good life. I was born eighth in the family--he was 33. He was a cutting-edge technology kinda guy--we all had great stereos in the 70's--he would "upgrade" and give us the "last year's model." He bought a video camera (black and white) when the camera was not the "recorder": you also had to carry a vcr in a sling on your shoulder. The cheapest place to buy a blank vcr tape was at the GE employee store--$35.00 Apiece. He bought a calculator when they were the New Thing: four-function (add, subtract, multiply, divide): $100.00. My brother has it; I have the next model, adding a square-root feature.

So many, many things I could tell you about him; so many ways in which I am grateful for the Man He Is. He taught me about my heavenly Father by his example. He proved a perfect model for me, when it came time to choose a husband. As a Grandpa, there is none better. As a Daddy, he is the Absolute Best.

Happy Birthday, Daddy. I'll always be your Barbie Doll.

Pieces of a Day

I've been at the sewing machine for weeks now, doing quilt tops and a few other sundry things. My neck and lower back are beginning to scream at me, begging for relief. So last night, I put an ice pack on my neck, leaned back on the sofa, and began to quilt this project: Oh, OH, I love quilting!! The in, out, in, out of the needle; then pulling the thread through--what a rush!

***********************************************
I keep a long-running list in my head of things I want, but don't want to pay full price for. I have been able to get two of them in the last few days! At a garage sale on Saturday, I picked up another set of Tupperware popsicle makers. I have other, cheaper ones, but the "stems" break from time to time. The Tupperware ones are much better. Right now in the freezer I have one set doing duty as popsicles, and another as pudding pops. *That* is a great deal--29 cent instant pudding from Aldi's and 2 cups of milk make nine pops.

Another thing on my "list" was the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock. This is an 850-page paperback, and every year I think I'm going to buy it, but other curriculum needs cry out more urgently. But yesterday at the Used Curriculum Sale, I found it for $4.00:

Not only that, but the owner had had it spiral-bound in two volumes--much nicer to handle!

Today is Okay-a-week-of-summer-break-is-over-and-we-need-a-LITTLE-routine-here Day. We I went over again Daily Chores, Reading Plans, and, midst groans of disappointment, declared the house a No-Media Zone for the day. So, I'd better get off, before they catch me....

Fun Times

Saturday evening was fun. Charming was working, and Alvin Fernald was on a campout, leaving Blackeyed Susan and me alone. Johnny Tremain was in Chicago at bachelor-party digs for a college friend, leaving Lily and the children alone. The obvious answer was to spend the evening together at Lily's!

I had leftover barbeque chicken, mashed 'taters and corn for Susan and me, and Lily cooked for her crew. Once supper was finished, our project for the evening was Laying Out Quilts, because there isn't enough room anywhere at my house to do this.

I had four tops done, and only one backing put together. We were able to sew those, and to lay out three of them to pin. Lily and Susan crawled around, pinning the "sandwiches" together, because my knees are unwilling to do it. They Joked about me paying them for their work--ha. My mother said that Work Well Done Is Its Own Reward. I know they think so, too!

We left the last top undone, becuase Lily and Susan had to do the first one twice--large, large wrinkles appeared as they took it up from the floor. They got a little grouchy, and I don't understand why--work well done being its own reward, and all. But since I have the squares done for two more tops, we (they) will pin them with the undone one when I get the other tops finished.

I spent Sunday and Monday basting two of the quilts, so they are ready to quilt. My a/c at home is Feast or Famine--of course it is least effective in my own bedroom, but seems to work Very Well in the Den, with the vent right behind the couch, so the frigid air comes rushing out over your feet as you watch tv. So doing some quilting, with the bulk of the quilt hanging over my feet sounds like a Great Summertime Activity.

This morning Lily and I are going to the Used Curriculum Sale put on by our homeschool association. I have gotten some dynamic dealies there before, and hope to again. I need to stay away from the Boxes and Boxes of Books for 10 and 25 cents. I Simply Don't Have Room For Them.

Or maybe I'll buy another bookcase today at Wal-mart...

I'm a Winner!!!

Wow! I'm a winner over at Life is Like a Lunchbox's Apronpalooza!! If you click on the link, you'll see the dreamy apron I won.

Here is ztoamom, who made the apron I won. You can find her "artsy" blog here.

I'm so glad that aprons are making a comeback. I have been in the middle of a two-year, five-quilt project (6 months down and doin' *okay* so far...), but I am itchin' to get into the Apron Thing. I have collected some fabrics and patterns that are waiting for me to "do them up!"

I remember the beginnings of the Feminist movement in the late '60's. Aprons were considered chains that held women to the home, keeping them from their destinies. So for the most part, they went by the wayside.

Yet, we never "looked down on" gardeners who wore aprons, or chefs, (or husband-barbeque-types) or welders, or...whomever *else* wore aprons. Now, think about why these people wear aprons:

To keep their clothes clean.

So, we were "freed" from the apron strings, but chained to the washing machine?

I'm glad to see the return of the apron, more for the Femininity than anything else. I remember my Mother putting on her apron in the morning--that signalled that she was ready for her day. (She had at least seven. It was my job to iron them--back in the day (for you younger gals) young girls started by learning to iron "flat" things--hankies, aprons, pillowcases.) My grandmother made my Mom's aprons--I remember she went through a phase of Cross-Stitching On Gingham--easy to do, and it made it a little fancier.

I don't have any of my mother's or grandmother's aprons--they were thrown out of even the rag-bag long ago. I did make quite a haul at a thrift store a few years ago--I got 12 or 15 aprons for 25 cents apiece (the cashier didn't even know what to charge me!) that were starched and folded--looked like someone just dumped a drawerful of Grandma's treasures after she passed away. Each one is "fancied" up in one way or another--a shapely pocket, embroidery, bindings. Women in former days knew that making your "tools" a little prettier took away some of the drudgery.

If you want a "crash course" in Aprons, go visit Apronista and find your Apron Groove...

Addendum to Previous Post

Okay, so reading over the post below, I sound a little defensive. Okay, Quite A Bit defensive.

Charming (one of whose major jobs in this marriage is to Talk Me Down From Ledges) made me realize that most, if not all people who pose the question "describe yourself," are not trying to Degrade Motherhood and Marriage. Maybe *they* don't take the time to pose the question exactly as they want it answered.

How easy it would be, Charming says, if , when asked to describe myself, I reply, "what would you like to know?" That way, the questioner could say, "what kind of books do you like to read? what do you like to do when you have a day by yourself? what do you like to do on vacation?" and I would not intimate from their *tone,* "you loser, aren't you anything but a baby factory? do you just like to hide behind your husband, you mousey good-for-nothing?"

See. Talking Me Down From The Ledge Once Again.

That's why I love this man.

Who I Am, Really

I was interested by the thoughts posed by the Headmistress at the Common Room, who was commenting on the book
Seasons of a Family's Life by Wendy Wright. The Headmistress is talking about defining ourselves as Mothers, also as Wives.

I have been in the situation many times, where I am asked to "describe myself." When I begin, "I am a wife of 31 years, mother of eight..." I get no further when the person interrupts: "No. Tell me who YOU are, not whose "wife" you are, or whose "mother" you are."

This always frustrates me. So, so much of my identity is wrapped up in those relationships. I'm not "me" without them.

When I came to motherhood at nineteen (and marriage ten weeks later, at twenty), I was a certain person, a person with so-and-so personality, and so-and-so both interesting and irritating characteristics. I am in no way that person anymore (tho' maybe the Irritations are still there!). Now I can say, "I am a person with a certain amount of patience, for 'Tribulation worketh patience,' and being a wife and mother has cultivated that." I can say, "I am a person who has acquired some Wisdom, both from being married, raising eight children, and by "just getting up in the morning."" I can say, "I am a person with quite a store of Interpersonal Relationship Skills," by reason of the same.

The questioner retorts, "But, if you didn't *have* a husband or children, how would you describe yourself?"

What an unanswerable question. I cannot describe myself outside of these relationships. You can't close Pandora's box, neither can I ever separate Who I Am from those relationships.

When pressed, I could say, "I am a quilter," or "I am a reader," or, "I am a Non-Confrontational person, a Peace-maker,(or any other facets of my temperament)", but those monikers seem so absolutely empty for me. I have a high IQ, but really had very little Common Sense until my forties. I had "some college," but got married in the middle. Even if I had a degree (a thing for which to be proud, and which no one could take away from me), it would be just an Accomplishment, not really a description of "who I am."

Nope. I prefer to describe myself BY my relationships; daughter of my Father God, daughter, sister, wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandma, friend, good neighbor, and on and on. These, I think, are much more important that What I've Accomplished.

When all is said and done, I want people, not Accomplishments, to be standing beside me at the end of my life. These are who I am.