Memorial Day 2011

Take time to remember... and say thank you.

and it's official!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

It's hard to believe that this is the last year in his "tweens." Next year I will have two teenagers in the house...oh dear Lord!

Ryan we couldn't be prouder of you!

Your hard work at school has rewarded you with great grades,

your dedication to your trumpet has led you to first chair,

your persistence at hockey and baseball has helped make you a great teammate and player,

leading you to the States in hockey and to kick butt on the baseball field.

You should be proud of your accomplishments this year, you've worked hard and your efforts have paid off!

Continue to be who you are-a great friend, kind, compassionate, loving caring, and spirited!

I am at awe at how you set your goals and strive to reach for them!

Continue to believe in yourself and you will be on to great things.

Enjoy your special day!

We love you tons!

Making...part 2

Basic Green Hoodie

from

Knits Men Want

by Bruce Weinstein

Cascade 220 Heathers

color 9448

size 6 needles

(totally unblocked as he wanted to wear it today-you know the first day it's going to be in the 80's)

If you have a teenager in your home, you know that it's all about the hoodie. The correct way to wear a said hoodie is to pull the hood up over your head so you all but disappear into the sweater. I sometimes think it's a defense mechanism for our kids and this turbulent world. I'm probably totally off base on this one and it's just the cool way to wear a hoodie.

Matt picked the color. It's a long standing joke to his uncle and his green sweater. As Matt was putting the sweater on this morning, he said he felt like his Uncle Tim. Role models: oh how important they are! Who knew a basic green sweater that his uncle wears constantly would be so significant in Matt's life? (Tim, you know you can never get rid of that sweater....ever!)

Our school year is drawing to a close and as I look at these pictures I find it hard to believe that we will have a freshman in our home. Eighth grade is in our high school, so he has conquered that fear. But, this is the real deal: working towards graduation. Things count now.

We will settle into our summer routine in about a month. And as we always do, there will be some rough days as he discovers he can't sit in front of the Xbox all day. But as a good friend said to me yesterday-we have just four more years and then they are gone-holy cow! Where has the time gone?

But inside this young man, I still see the little boy with the mischievous smile and his great sense of humor.

Enjoy your sweater Matt! It's made with much love!

Making

It's done!

Waiting for Matt to get home for the modeling session.

That's only if the clouds clear out of here!

Stay tuned....

5 things...

I'm not going to say anything about the rain. I think we can all agree that we've had enough. My heart goes out to the people of Joplin. I count my blessings that I live where I do and will remember these poor people as I start to complain about our long winters.

My prayers are with the victims and the people helping to get these people back on their feet.

1. It's birthday WEEK around here! Ry had his friends over on Saturday. I have never met someone who loves celebrating his birthday as much as my son. We have an action packed week in store!

2. The weather broke long enough that they were able to sit outside for breakfast. You know the usual, piles of pancakes, a pound of bacon, lots and lots of sausage and a half gallon of OJ!

3. Gone are the days of Laser Tag. Tastes have become more expensive. Japanese Steak House is the new thing to do!

4. You know, because they are twelve and fire fascinates them...

5. And lastly, I'm reading To Kill a Mockingbird. I somehow was not assigned to read it in high school. My sister-in-law was reading it on our vacation and encouraged me to pick it up. Thanks Julie for the push. What a wonderful book.

enjoy the rest of the week!

Link Love...

Holy Hannah-It's Saturday already! Not sure where the time goes. My poor lilacs are rotting before they even bloom due to all the rain. I've cut many and have them all over the house. It smells alittle lilac-y here at Upper Pond. Off to two baseball games and then a house full of twelve year olds for the night. Wish us luck!

1. Okay, I'm all for the DIY movement and all...but do people really have time to do this? Sweet idea and you can make cool colors. But this is an area that I might have to pass.

2. Found this site the other day and loved it. I'm always looking for creative ideas to liven up our menu around here!

3. You've probably have seen this picture a million times already....but I love it. We finally see Prince Charles as a dad and not some stuffy royal.

4. What would you take with you?

5. I stumbled upon this site awhile ago. They provide excellent articles and tutorials for all levels. They have given me a good kick in the butt to look at my photography in a different way.

enjoy the weekend everyone!

Making...

Mom told me never to play with my food....but she didn't know how much fun it is with a camera in hand!

Hello~I made muffins~big deal! But I am knitting and should be done with this green hoodie thing by the end of the week. Check back soon for the finished project!

5 things...

oh boy, is it a gloomy day here today. I just can't seem to find the energy to do anything (and believe me I have a lot to do!). I'm hoping that the rain will continue (don't hate me) and that both baseball games will be cancelled. I'm not looking forward to sitting in damp, 50 degree rainy weather. It's a spaghetti and meatball kind-of night and here's hoping we will all be able to just relax this evening.

Speaking of baseball, my five things all have to do with the sport of baseball. Things that I have been thinking about after attending a multitude of games.

1. To the coaches: Please when you are creaming the other team, because you stacked your own team, try to refrain from stealing the bases in the 6th inning. I'm thinking that your 22-6 win is pretty much a given and it really doesn't do any good to crush the souls of the ten and eleven year olds any further.

2. To the coaches (part 2): Yelling at the teenage umps, that attended a two hour class, is not going to teach anyone, anything. Coach, you end up looking like a jerk, the teen ump looks scared to death and the players are standing there picking dandelions. Take the time after the game to find the rule that you disagree with and talk respectfully to the teens. They will appreciate the time spent with them.

3. Parents: Please get to know the parents on your team before you start making fun of your own players. Ever hear the saying..."foot in mouth?" That pitcher on the mound is trying his best and his parents are scared to death for him (can you tell I'm a mom of a pitcher?). Really what good does it do to tell the whole bleacher section that our team sucks?

4. To the umps...please try to be forceful with these testosterone driven coaches. Take note of the jerks and get to know the good ones. And remember, when the game gets long-widen that strike zone so we can go home!

5. And lastly, dear mothers of 14 year old boys. Please don't talk about your son's cup size in the bleachers. I am sure they would be mortified to know that you are having this discussion and frankly, I really don't need to know either!

Enjoy your week everyone!

Link Love...

Just a quick link today. I've been busy with stuff around the house and having Blogger down for a few days helped loads: no distractions.

I found this great little video while wasting time last night. It gives you a whole different view than what we saw on television.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

5 things...

Wow...what a wonderful weekend. Two full days of sun! I got all my front gardens weeded and hosta divided so when the mulch arrives this week I will be ready!

Mother's Day was calm this year (thank goodness-I pretty much let them do what they wanted so I didn't have to get into it with any of them) which let me spend some time with my new camera! woot! Have a good week!

1. I find little tokens of where they have been during the previous days. Shoes, shorts, pants, dirty dishes...all provide me some aggravation, yet they are reminders that they are active and interesting young men.

2. I just finished reading The Book Thief (link on the sidebar). If you haven't read it, do so. I haven't become so involved in a book's characters in a long, long while.

3. What's with the lettuce coming up in my garden? Last year it didn't want to grow and quickly died. This year I have it re-emerging. My parsley also survived the harsh winter. Two nice surprises as I unearthed the gardens.

4. With the warmer weather means crazy schedules until June. Baseball is in full swing. I will be at a field: Monday, Tuesday,Wednesday and Saturday of this week. Not only do both boys play, Matt is now umping. This should be good...

5. The farmer's market started back up this weekend. So many new vendors and good food to buy. This week I bought homemade sourdough bread (which the boys enjoyed in two nights), fresh pasta and some creamy goat cheese. All were delicious!

enjoy your week everyone!

Link Love...

It's another beautiful day here in my neck of the woods. It could be a bit warmer, but I'm just thankful it's not raining yet again! No big plans for Mother's Day and I like it that way. It's a tough day for my boys (I think I've said this before). The pressure to make good choices for an entire day just seems to backfire. Here's wishing you a wonderful weekend! I'll be carting my kids around and that's just the way I like it!

1.Love these! What a fun way to cheer up the house, or a party or just because. They look super easy to make too!

2. This photographer captured incredible pictures of the tornadoes in the South. Read her story here. My heart breaks for the victims.

3. I may have posted these before, but I think they are hysterical. My husband's fiftieth is fast approaching...mmmm.....

4. Love this collection. Especially the eyelet/lace dress.

5. I love photo booths. What a great idea for any party or celebration.

As you can see I was playing with Lightroom again. I love this little cemetery at the end of my road. It has all sorts of character. The farmer plants something new in this field each year and in the fall the oak tree turns a beautiful red/orange.

Making...

absolutely nothing! Not one thing...oh wait, I did make chocolate chip cookies yesterday. And then I found some frozen pumpkin muffins way back in the freezer so I popped those in the oven. But, that's about it! I'm in a huge slump and really nothing is inspiring me. I see wonderful things being made and I'm just in awe. I'm going to chalk it up to the dreary weather and wishing I was still on vacation.

So instead of feeling sorry for myself, I will pull my butt off this chair and go re-evaluate my knitting. Hopefully, by next week I will have something...anything to show you!

Happy making!

5 things...in pictures

It was a good weekend. The sun was out and the flowers decided to wake up!

I'm not sure what I can say about today's major news event. So I will remain quiet and reflect about my friends that lost good friends, work associates and family members nearly ten years ago. I'm sure the images of that day in September are hard to watch again today and only hope that they are all finding some comfort in whatever they do throughout today.

Enjoy my study of the fence.

Same fence-just viewed a bit differently in each shot.

enjoy your week!