Friday Afternoon

It's so nice to see the sun!

And it's even nicer to see the sun after 5pm.  Did you know Daylight Savings Time starts up again in just two weeks?  And the Spring Equinox is only a week after that...

We made construction paper snowflakes and hearts earlier in the month and glued them to the window with tiny drops of white glue.  The shadows on the curtains are a nice bonus.

I think one of my favorite ways to relax nowadays is to sit in the warm sunshine and knit.  Here's a glimpse of one of my new projects in the works.  I'm trying out some undyed wool yarn, Cascade's Ecological Wool.  So far, so good.

Happy weekend!

Spice Muffins

I think I might have posted this recipe before, but these are Todd's favorite muffins and they do bear repeating. Especially since I've added one more super ingredient for added yum. Oats make everything better chewier, right?

Spice Muffins, take 2:

Oven 375'

Cream:
1/2 C (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C brown sugar
Add:
1 egg, mix.
Add:
1 C applesauce (also works great with cooked, mashed squash or pumpkin or any kind of cooked, mashed fruit)
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. allspice, 1/2 tsp. cloves, mix.
Sift together:
2 C flour (I do half bead flour and half whole-wheat flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
Add to wet and stir till just combined.
Optionally add: 1 C rolled oats
and/or: 1/2 C chopped nuts (optional, but I bet pumpkin and pecans would be good!)

Fill 12 regular or 6 jumbo greased muffin cups.
Bake 15 min. for regular muffins or 25-30 min. for jumbo muffins (keep an eye on them, I've sometimes had the outsides get pretty toasty while the insides aren't finished baking yet)

Mmmm.

Six Years

It is hard to believe that it has been six years already since my wonderful, beloved Dad passed away. His kindness, patience, humor, and serendipity inspire me every day.

The Particular Awesomeness of Gramma Becky

For Christmas Roo got a tool bag full of drawing and drafting supplies and she's really been having fun exploring all the uses for each of the tools. Here she demonstrates the entertainment value of watercolors and drafting templates.

Meanwhile, I was busy playing with my camera and her dinosaurs from last Christmas. These also get heavy use by all of us who remain housebound during the day. Is it any wonder that one of Roos and Moos earliest vocalizations were roars and growls, dinosaurs in hand?

I have a new secret surprise knitting project to share. Also, I'm knitting another sweater for Roo/Moo. And I'm on to the feather and fan border on my Multnomah, and I'm really itching to start my Tempest. But first I have to keep up with the laundry, dishes, diapers, yogurt/granola/bread making, etc, etc, etc.

We're having quite the warm spell - it's supposed to get up to the mid-50's today. On Tuesday, Moo went on his first ever walk around the neighborhood, and he made it all the way up to the mailbox and back on his own two feet. Hiking this spring and summer is going to be awesome!

(But I am going to miss the babywearing.)

Slithery Snake(s)

It's time to show off some more cute toys I've made:

For Moo's first birthday, last October, I finally got around to finishing another giant Slithery Snake (Ravelry link). I've been wanting to tackle another one for quite a while now. This one is in a more boy-friendly palette - lots of greens and blues, with a bit of red and orange for contrast -

- as opposed to the bright rainbow of colors I used for Roo's miniature slithery snake a few years ago:

These guys get a lot of action, especially when Todd is chasing Roo around trying to snap her bottom with the kitchen towel. This is her counter-attack weapon of choice. Whip-ah!

New Spaces

All aboard!

Now that we have the flooring down and the fireplace installed in our walk-out basement, we've been putting our new family room to good use. We have a southwest exposure, so in the afternoons it is bathed in sunlight, and it is turning out to be the perfect place to play trains and soak in the light and warmth. February doldrums, not here.

So many interesting things to check out. Wheels! Crossing gates! Drawbridges! Oh my!

Even the kitten gets into the new sunbathing routine.

Some Thoughts

It's pretty amazing how life changes when you have wee ones. I remember the first few years of our marriage, the first few years we were out here, how the time went so slowly while Todd was at work, and how I struggled to find meaning in my new life, and meaningful things to do with my time.
There was a lot going on in my life just then: a new marriage, a new home half-way across the country from everything and everyone familiar, my dad's newly-diagnosed terminal illness. Still, sometimes I look back on that time and think that I, honestly, wasted it.
Now, though, every day oozes contentment. I have a job I love, that I have the amazing privilege to perform, of seeing these two little ones through each new day. We work together, we learn together, we play and read and sing and tickle and laugh. We go to the library and the art museum; in the Spring and Summer and Fall we go walking in the nature preserves nearby, in the arboretum, and up to the mailbox. We garden.
Life is so full these days, that I seem to have the opposite problem. Before Roo and Moo arrived, I seemed paralyzed by the amount of unstructured, unlimited time I had on my hands. And now I am so busy keeping house and raising my pre-schooler and toddler (all of which I love doing!) that I'm still dreaming of achieving my goals, rather than working to make them happen.
I'm sure it is going to be easier as Roo and Moo gain more and more independence from me. When they can sit next to me and draw alongside me, when I won't have to keep a sharp eye on Moo and his predilection for eating the crayons.

I've found I've loved having babies to care for. I wonder how the next stage of their childhood - and my motherhood - will turn out, as it inches closer.

It's reassuring to me that we are all learning and growing together, Roo, Moo, and I.