Can you hear that?

That sound? That ticking sound, like a clock? The countdown is on, school starts in 5 days. 5 DAYS!! Woo hoo.

Louise suggested I sit down and have a stiff drink.....

This is the kind of week I've had (in list form):

• Tommy fell on his head while playing tennis, he's fine but missed football practice for 2 days due to the fact that he couldn't get his helmet on because the EGG on the side of his head was HUGE.


• The boy who lives upstairs from us had a terrible skateboard accident that I kind of witnessed. It was one of the most horrifying things I have ever seen, as well as heartbreaking. His mom and dad are beside themselves with worry. (I got an update on his condition....his compound fracture to the left lower arm was operated on and then got infected and now has to be operated on again Monday. He's 14 years old and a really good kid. Please have good thoughts for him and his family).


• Nate hurt his foot playing football. We had xrays taken, he's fine. His foot was just bruised, badly, but not broken.


• Abby got Coxsackie virus (also known as "hand, foot and mouth"). She was miserable for 2 days with BLISTERS in her THROAT. She's doing much better now.


• Nate had an accident at a football scrimmage on Thurs. He was taken by AMBULANCE to the hospital. Thank God it was only a broken clavicle (it could have been worse, like a broken shoulder or a broken neck). He'll be fine but he's out of football for the season.


• Tommy has Coxsackie virus. He's had a high temp for 2 days and a sore throat.


• Took Tommy to the doctor's to rule out strep throat since he's prone to it (I started worrying that maybe it wasn't hand foot and mouth, that maybe for him it was strep). He's negative. Thank God because they said one more time and we'll schedule a tonsillectomy (like I need that crap).

So, I was thinking Gin and Tonic......or vodka straight up.

*EDT: To Becky in Iowa, Southern Comfort sounds damned fine! And thanks for your good wishes. I remember reading about your sons broken arm, I'm glad to hear he's doing well.

100 Things About Me; Part 4

1. I don't (or can't) memorize the words to songs.
2. I never sing along, even when I am alone.
3. I have a terrible sense of direction and am thrown off even more if I am within a mile or 2 of the ocean.
4. For instance, if I go to Quincy, anywhere except the Registry of Motor Vehicles or Quincy College, I will undoubtably end up at Wollaston Beach. If I need to go to, say, Hingham District Court for jury duty (because we all know the only reason I would need to go to that court would be for jury duty, wink, wink) I will end up at Nantasket Beach.
5. I can sew. I can make and alter clothing, I would say I am at an intermediate/advanced level. I've been sewing since 1982.
6. I can also hand embroider, crochet, knit (I've mentioned that before) and I have dabbled in origami and calligraphy.
7. I'm not a very good cook. I get by, but just barely.
8. Some people enjoy cooking. I don't. I find it boring (which came first? Do I dislike cooking because I'm not good at it or am I not good at it because I don't like it?) and tedious.
9. I used to like Tom Cruise but now I think he is a big boob.
10. I also used to like Rosie O'donnell, again, I think she is a big boob.
11. I suffered from post-partum depression with 3 of my children.
12. I don't ever hide that fact. I am not ashamed to have suffered and by being open about it I hope to be able to support other mothers who are suffering. If you are suffering from Post Partum Depression, I have a shoulder to lean on and an ear to listen......day or night, don't be shy or ashamed.
13. I would consider myself to be a good listener.
14. I prefer small groups over large parties.
15. I used to be painfully shy.
16. I'm not shy anymore, at least not in social situations. But you better believe I would never, ever get up in front of a huge crowd of people and make a speech. I would fake a heart attack before I did that.
17. I had the same pair of sneakers for my entire Highschool years. I would have probably had them alot longer than the 4 years of highschool if my little sister (who is almost 33) didn't borrow them for softball practice and ruin them.
18. I don't wear out my shoes. They go out of style or I get bored with them first (usually years and years later).
19. I find it hard to talk about myself (that is why it has taken me so long to compile this list).
20. I remember exactly what I was doing and wearing on 9/11.
21. I was just about to get in the shower when my mother called and told me to turn on the news. I was wearing a white t-shirt and pink sweatpants. My couch was under the big picture window and the sky was so clear and it was very sunny outside. I turned on the news and watched nonstop for the next 24 hours. I even slept in the living room, with the TV on, dozing on and off.
22. I would have another child in a heartbeat if I could financially afford it or if I could at least guarantee it would be another girl.
23. We really want to have another son, but a girl would be better, she could share a room with Abby.
24. We are NOT having anymore kids.
25. This is the last one, let's see, one more thing about me.........I wear a size 9 shoe.

Well, that's it. More than you ever wanted to know about me! I wanted to post some pictures but the boys are all away (one at mom's and 2 at a friend's) and Abby is sleeping. I am going to take this opportunity to spend some quality time with my hubby instead of uploading photos (I have priorities you know!).

Is the summer over yet?

I've been kind of absent lately. The summers are always long for me. Not having a vehicle is a real drag, especially during the summer when the kids are all home. We tend to spend a lot of time together, at home, in close quarters. I get a touch of cabin fever and the kids get the "I'm bored"s. Although this summer has been slightly different. We moved! To a bigger place, closer to the center of town. Karen over at http://nothingbutknit.blog-city.com once gave me a tip for entertaining the kids during the summer. She suggested we take a walk to the library. It was an excellent suggestion except that we lived over 2 miles away. But now, we live 2 blocks up!! So Karen, now we can walk to the library. I took Abby the other day, we stopped at the Deli on the way back and bought some Salami and cheese, went to the insurance agency to give them our new address and popped into the hair salon to have Abby's hair fixed/cut. It was awesome to be able to actually get out of the house and get some errands done also (without a car!).

So, yeah, we had to get Abby's hair FIXED. I knew it was coming, the day she would get a hold of a pair of scissors and cut her own hair. I cried, really, because the little pile of hair looked like so much (I saw the pile of hair before I actually saw her). But, as it turns out, it wasn't so bad. She cut a few of the wispy hairs around her face and then a small chunk from the back. I just had it trimmed to her chin in a cute little bob. It looks adorable and it's still long enough for some little pigtails.

The boys started football this week. They are adjusting to actual physical activity. It's quite sad though, you'd think being young kids that they wouldn't be so sore afterwards. I know they work them hard but my kids have been sitting around for the last month and a half, now they are running laps, doing sit-ups and other assorted drills. I figure by September, when the games begin, they will be in better shape. I'll post some action photos soon.

Another bonus of moving is we live on the same street as the middle school, high school and Memorial Park Elem. I can see the front door to the middle school from my front porch. And the boys practice at the field behind the middle school so they can walk to practice. Billy is a coach so it is extremely convenient. Plus this season I will be able to go to all the home games, and be able to get more photos of them in action.

So I put the Mystery Stole down for awhile. It required more attention than I could give it. I was so busy packing and moving and unpacking, I just couldn't concentrate on it. And in the mean time, the theme was revealed and all the clues have come out (all but one actually, but we basically know what the design is). It's not a symmetrical design, one side is a wing (swan), the other comes to a point (you can see that in my previous post). I am contemplating changing it to a symmetrical stole (as so many others are doing). I still haven't picked it back up yet, but definitely plan to soon.

I kind of got a "bee in my bonnet" and started a new little sweater for Abby. I wanted her to have a really cute hand knit cardigan for nursery school. So I pulled out my Dale of Norway patterns and got started. Photos to follow as soon as I have something good to show. The thing with using Baby Ull (Dale of Norway's baby yarn, which is fingering weight) is the gauge is like a million stitches to the inch. So the short of it, one round is 241 stitches long. So the progress is slow. And since it's the summer and the kids require so much of me, I haven't the time to sit and knit more than a round here and there. This will be my first project that will require cutting a steek (for the non-knitters that means when I am all done knitting I will CUT my work and make a pullover into a cardigan......scary stuff).

So that's it. School starts soon (3 weeks and counting), we can't wait! I'll try to post some pictures of the new place (where the heck is my camera anyway!) and some cute pictures of Abby's new haircut. And of course some knitting pictures too.