Friday, February 7, 2014

Friday Mishmash

I know just about everyone is experiencing a harsher-than-normal winter, but it keeps surprising me...after all, this IS south Texas.  Yesterday morning, Cary and I were scheduled to run at 6:30 am.  The forecast as of late the night before was cold - like 30 degrees, which is not fun but certainly doable.  My alarm went off at 5:30 am and like a good runner, I checked the weather.  It was 28 degrees, felt like 14 degrees, north winds at 17 mph, and there was a little snowflake icon...wait, what??  When did THAT come into the forecast?  Needless to say, we decided not to run, which turned out to be a very good decision because it started to sleet and snow while we would have been out there!
 Dippin' Dots...or ice, however you want to see it.

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I went to school on Wednesday - fourth grade, to be exact.  My running buddy Amy, who is a teacher, asked me to come and help teach some of her students how to knit.  How could I say no?  The world needs more knitters!  It was quite fun - the kids were all really eager and caught on pretty quickly.  I wore one of the cardigans that I've knitted and they were all fascinated by the fact that I'd made it (which was my intent in wearing it).  I was there for a few hours and made lots of new friends, and I'll probably go back again soon.  The students were using supplies that were donated - not all the needles were easy to use (some were circulars with really curly cables, some were straights that were really big), but they managed to make it work.  Here's a couple of pictures:
My first group - I was casting on for them and then we started knitting away.
My second group - it got a little crazy!  The book had pictures of dogs which the kids were certain I'd like to see (it's like they KNOW me, haha), plus everyone was knitting or watching their friends knit.  

There were just as many boys knitting as girls, which I thought was really cool.  No one seemed to get frustrated or upset when something wonky happened, as it often does with knitting, and they all looked very pleased with their work.  I couldn't have asked for more, really, except for extra knitting time with them...their darn classwork kept interrupting our knitting!

It was fun to be back in an elementary school after so many years.  While we were waiting in line for the bathrooms, I couldn't resist buying a pencil from the pencil machine:
Loved that it was a Dr. Seuss pencil...loved it even more when I got the Sam I Am design!  It's the little things that thrill me, for real.

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Just one little knitting update - I started making a baby sweater.  Why?  Why not?  I'm using some of the yarn that Fran sent, and it's so soft...just perfect for a baby:
I just need to knit a few inches of the body and it's finished...love how quickly baby items come together!

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In case you missed it, I snuck in a review/giveaway post yesterday - click here if you want to read all about it!

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Twenty-seven years ago today I became a mother.  Happy Birthday to Sam!  He's in Washington State for work but hopefully I'll get to talk to him today.  My baby is all grown up!
He was tiny - 5 lbs, 13 oz!  Pretty cute, if you ask me.

Have a great weekend!

29 comments:

  1. What a near opportunity to teach youngsters the basics of knitting!!!!

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  2. Happy birthday Sam!

    I love it that you went to school to learn the kids how to knit. And it's great to see you can use the yarn I sent you to make something small. I was hoping it would come in handy for that.

    I was just mentioning at lunch today at work that it's snowing in Texas! It seems we are one of the few countries in the world where the weather is pretty normal as it's supposed to be. When I see photo's of England with all that rain, that doesn't make one happy either.

    Have a great weekend my friend.

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    1. Your yarn is just perfect for a baby item - it's soooo soft! I love the connection of making something with yarn that you chose. :)

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  3. What an awesome idea to teach kids at school! Perfect age to get kids away from video games and onto something more productive - I love it!

    Happy Birthday to your son! They grow up so fast, don't they??!! Mine will be 22 next month!

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    1. I can't believe how fast time is passing now. Hard to believe how old my kids are!

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  4. Well then the Sam I Am pencil is most certainly appropriate! I hope you get to talk with Sam... those adult kids certainly do their own thing though don't they?

    It tickled me that you said 30 was cold but doable. We've been in the 20s or lower for so long that if it hits 30 it feels like a heatwave!

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  5. Little babies really are the cutest. And look at you,knitting baby sweaters and teaching kids to knit! Outstanding!

    I have gotten pretty spoiled this winter.pretty much anything below 50 is too cold to go out walking, and if there's any precipitation,forget about it! Fortunately I have a big dog who agrees with me.

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    1. I am cracking up at the idea of Noah not wanting to go for a walk when it's cold...has he SEEN himself???

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  6. Those photos of the kids knitting - how sweet! I love that they had donated materials, too. I imagine kids that have lots of experience with video games and computers probably have good hand dexterity and can pick up knitting pretty quick.

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    1. I didn't think about that, but yes, I bet they are better with hand dexterity because of their video gaming. Good point!

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  7. Aw, Happy Birthday Sam! I hope the snow stays away from where he is in Washington. It's a mess down here in Oregon.

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    1. My parents were going to drive from OR to WA to have dinner with him today, but the snow put the kibosh on that plan. :(

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  8. Wow Sam was a beautiful baby!!

    I love that you are teaching the kids to knit! That's cool!

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    1. Thanks, he was! And grew into a pretty handsome man, if I do say so myself. :)

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  9. 30 is a great temp for running.... compared to 0 :) But definitely good to avoid all of that ice! Yikes. What a weird winter all around.

    That is SO COOL that you're teaching kids to knit! How fun! And it's neat that boys want to learn too.

    Happy Birthday to your son! I just did the math - wow, you were young when you had him! My mom was 31 when she had me, and I'm on track to writing "a 40-something's journey to be a mom" as my next blogging venture ;)

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  10. What a hoot to be able to teach the school kids - and it IS a great age for that. My 11-year old grandson is into the rubber-band bracelets and made me one in Seahawk colors for the SuperBowl. It's fun to see them doing crafts instead of video games.

    I have always wanted to learn how to knit, but just have not got around to it. My 20-yr-old son taught himself with on-line tutorials, and I just have to laugh to watch him in front of NetFlix watching some smash-em-up movie while knitting away! When he came home at Christmas, he knit his best friend a scarf - too cute.

    Hope Sam finds a job up this way - we can rescue him from the searing Texas summers!

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    1. From searing Texas summers to freezing PNW winters! Turns out the snow and ice delayed their testing and he'll be there even longer, poor kid!

      Very cool that your son taught himself how to knit...he should teach you now. :)

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  11. I like the cardi you wore to school. And--I think your hair looks so nice straightened in those pics.
    Baby Sam is soo precious! (Was he called Sammy then?) Beautiful baby.
    Is he getting a pencil for his birthday?
    We celebrated my 2 boys 27th in Jan. (one weighed 5.4!) My husband didn't have a thick, dark stache though. :)

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    1. He was always just Sam, even as a baby. Congrats on your 27-year-olds!!!

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  12. Awww, big kudos for volunteering in the school. Is the pencil, Sam's birthday gift? Well, maybe he needs more than just a Sam I Am pencil for his birthday.

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    1. I'm saving the pencil for his Christmas stocking. ;)

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  13. Awww...how fantastic! LOVE the knitting lesson! Lucky kids!!!! And speaking of kids, OMG, how cute was Sam????????? Seriously, I think my ovaries twinged with that photo...and for a fleeting moment I thought "I want one". Kidding. Sort of.

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  14. Sweet Sam! Love that photo. Think of all the adorable stuff you could have knitted when they were babies!

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  15. That weather better clear up because I am escaping to Texas to avoid the snow here in Canada!

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  16. What a fun way to spend part of your day!

    We had "weather" this morning, which was a fun way to spend that morning. :)

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  17. Happy Birthday Sam!!!
    Id sure love to be in your class!!!
    Someday!!
    Im rather tired of the snow and cold!!!! We had a surprise 6 inches today!! Walked out of church, and there it was, falling from the sky!!!

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