Happy Birthday Ian!

The boy turned 6 last Wednesday, and we had a small family party at home.

Then yesterday, we had a swimming & pizza party with many of his friends.

NASCAR birthday

It’s worked out that many of Ian’s friends have birthdays in Sept/October, so we’ve been averaging one or two parties a weekend for the last several weeks. It’s been fun because we know the parents well too, and most of the parties end up being all-family affairs. But now, Ian’s party yesterday is the last one on our calendar for a while (that we know of right now, anyway). Now that she’s old enough to “get” the idea of a birthday party and having attended several recently, Shannon is looking forward to a party for her 3rd birthday at the end of November!

Remembering Susan G. Santo on 9/11

She was 24 years old and had a young daughter.  She went to work on September 11, 2001, at Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. in the North Tower of the World Trade Center.  She was killed that day as a victim of coordinated terrorist attacks against the United States.

I did not know Susan G. Santo, but I’ve been thinking of her almost constantly since I pledged to write a tribute to her as part of Project 2,996.  I asked to be randomly assigned a name, and being a mother of young children myself, it was especially poignant to have the name of a young mother as my honoree.  I’ve been able to find some information about her online, mere snippets of a full and rich life, but they begin to paint a picture of the woman whose life was taken that day. 

In words from those who knew her, she is remembered for her goofiness, humor, strength, determination, and her devotion to her daughter.  To some she was Sue, Susie, Susan.  To online friends she was “mbossy” and her daughter “lil bossy.”  She was a fan of the Mets (and especially Mike Piazza), Junior’s Cheesecake and the musical group Barenaked Ladies.  I remember and mourn today for Susan, this woman I did not know, for the stolen life, the lost potential, the tragically premature separation of mother and child. 

One friend, who chatted with Susan online, wrote in a tribute:

“I remember one of our last ‘talks’ together, how you told me you were worried your daughter would end up like you, without a mom. I told you not to think like that, you were young and had years with her.”

I pray for her daughter, father, brother, family and friends, that they might find comfort in their memories of Susan, and from each other in their common grief.  It’s an honor to have this chance to commemorate her today.  May we always remember Susan and the other victims who were murdered so horrifically that day.

More tributes from Project 2,996.

Birthday Fun

The pool party for Ian’s 5th birthday was a lot of fun.  After the swimming, we adjourned to the party room for pizza and cake, where Shannon stood by her big brother’s side as the song was sung, eagerly awaiting her turn at the cake.  Which she kept repeating, just so everyone would know what she wanted: “Cake?  Cake?  Cake?”

Happy Birthday

Dear Ian,

Happy Birthday!  I’m so proud of you and I can’t wait to see how you develop and grow during your 6^th year.  May your year be filled with many joys, a few challenges, and opportunities for growth and triumph.  I’ll be with you every step.

Love, Mom

Anxiety check

In three days I’ll be going under the knife.  While this is a minor surgery, it’s still surgery requiring general anesthesia and an overnight stay at the hospital, and I find myself nervous.  I continue to marvel at how my outlook has changed since having children.  Now that I have two little people depending on me, I’m so much more anxious about the possibility of something going wrong.  Naturally, I didn’t want anything to happen to me when I was a single woman, but as a wife and mother the stakes are so much higher.  It’s not just about me anymore.  Yes, of course I’ve always had family and friends who cared what happened to me…but it is different when young children are part of the equation.

Lest this post verge off any further into gloomy territory, I must remember that I’m having this surgery to correct a condition that impairs my day to day functioning, and that, if left untreated, could have serious long-term health ramifications.  So really, I’m doing this to benefit myself and my family in the short-term and in the long run.  I’ll just remind myself of what I’m telling the kids—it’s no big deal, and mommy will be back home the next day.  And I’ll stop thinking about those explicitly-worded informed consent and living will forms that they sent me.

Things I Want to Always Remember

I haven’t done very well at keeping the kids’ baby books updated, so I’m going to post a few notes here on the fly, just so I don’t forget.

Things I Want to Always Remember:

The look on the boy’s face as he doggy-paddled by himself for the first time in the pool.  Joy, pride, a tiny bit of apprehension, but mostly joy.

The way baby girl says “Hi Mommy” in her tiny little toddler voice.  She only says a few words clearly at this age, but those are my favorites.

The exaggerated “mwah!” when baby girl gives a kiss.

Bedtime conversations with the boy when the lights go out after storytime.  Sometimes I get frustrated because I just want him to GO TO SLEEP ALREADY! when I’m tired myself, and I have a list of things I need to do before I can go to bed.  But when I take the time to relax and just enjoy laying there beside him, we have some of the best conversations.  Before I know it, he’ll no longer be a little boy and I’m really going to miss the quiet conversations in the dark.

Baby girl’s glorious giggles when we find her tickle spots. 

The way the boy can make baby girl laugh and the delight he takes in doing so.

How it feels when the boy comes running over to give me a hug that nearly knocks me off my feet.

How good it feels to pick up baby girl and snuggle her against me.  She’s starting to become more independent and less willing to sit and cuddle, but there are still moments when she’s content to sit still and those are the greatest.

The way the boy always wants to play with his sister, and the way she wants to do everything he does.  I suppose as they get older they’ll go through stages when they don’t want to have anything to do with one another, but I hope the foundation will be there so that they will come back around and always value each other.  When my only sister and I were kids, we used to have terrible fights.  My mom would always tell us that we should love each other because when they (my parents) were dead and gone, my sister and I would still have each other.  And now, though I hope my parents will be around for many more years, I am grateful for my sister and understand what my mom was trying to convey.

OK, one more fun one before I get too emotional, as I am prone to do: the way baby girl says “splee-splah” (splish-splash) when she wants to take a bath, and the delight the boy has showing off his pedaling prowess on his bike.  Those training wheels will be coming off before we know it!

Foolproof Gardening?

I don’t have much gardening experience beyond sticking a few annuals in the ground each year, but I decided to try vegetable gardening this year, on a very small scale.  On the advice of a friend who knows a lot more about this than I do, I got two Earth Boxes and planted them this weekend.  I’ve been assured that they are almost foolproof.  Assuming you can follow directions to set them up properly and that they get enough sun, the rest is pretty easy.  A below soil irrigation system means that as long as you keep the reservoir full, you can neither over- nor under-water the plants.

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Behold, tomatoes on the left and cucumbers on the right.  (Ignore the weedy mess that is our “lawn”–we inherited that when we moved in last summer.)  They aren’t much to look at yet, but I have high hopes for my fledgling vegetable garden.

About two hours after I planted the Earth Boxes, the boy came into the kitchen and noticed the tomatoes I had purchased earlier that day at the farmers’ market.  He was disappointed when I told him that no, they had not come off the new tomato plants

Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

On Saturday I attended the annual Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival (MDSW) for the first time. What a great day! This is one of the largest fiber festivals in the country–I’ve heard estimates of 50,000-100,000 attendees per year. It’s a celebration of all things fiber–from the sheep, rabbits, and goats to the finished products–yarn and knitted/felted/woven fabrics. There is an animal component with exhibitions and judging, and a market component where one can buy fleece, roving, yarn, spinning wheels, and any knitting/spinning/weaving tool or accessory you can think of. There are also other vendors selling hand crafted baskets, furniture, jewelry, and the like. Add in musicians and fair food and you have the makings of a great festival.

Having heard the stories of the crowds and traffic backups on Saturday (the festival runs all weekend), I decided to head out early for the just-over an hour drive from Northern Virginia to the Howard (MD) County fairgrounds. My strategy worked well. I breezed right in ahead of the crowds, got a great parking space near the entrance, and headed onto the grounds. Even though I arrived about an hour before the official start time, there were people there even earlier, and there were already substantial lines of people waiting outside two very popular booths–the festival souvenirs, and The Fold, vendor for the currently-hot item “Socks That Rock” sock yarn.

I wandered a bit and then met up with some friends who arrived a couple hours later. We went to the Ravelry meetup, then spent the rest of the day shopping, eating, and sitting on blankets knitting. I left the festival 10 hours after I arrived, sunburned, dead tired, and very happy.

My “loot” from MDSW: yarn for four pairs of socks and a shawl, a felted iPod case, and a hand-woven white pine basket that was made as I watched.

Lessons learned:
–The hype about things selling out is overstated. To listen to people talk beforehand, you’d think that the stock of certain popular booths would be ravaged within minutes of the festival opening. There was still plenty of yarn and other goodies left by the end of the day.
–People talked about how crowded it is on Saturday and not to go until Sunday if you dislike crowds. Yes, there were a lot of people there, but it wasn’t uncomfortably crowded. Maybe I’m desensitized from living in DC and commuting on the overcrowded Metro trains every day?
–Having been there once, next year I’m going to plan my time so that I see more of the animal side of the festival. I spent most of the day browsing the booths and knitting on the lawn. No regrets about that, but next year I would like to see the sheep dog demonstration, maybe a shearing, and wander through the barns to see more of the animals.
–Cell phones are a godsend at events like this. Made it so much easier for our group to coordinate and find each other when we wanted to go separate ways and then regroup.
–Reapply sunscreen liberally. With my fair Anglo skin I’m usually over-vigilent about sunscreen, but I still managed to get burned on one side of my neck and shoulders.
–There was more of a cross-section of people than I was expecting: male, female, old, young, singles and families.

I’m eager to start knitting up the yarn I bought, but I’m trying to finish at least a few of the projects that I already have in the works before casting on more.  Stay tuned for updates.

A day of freebies

Today is RIDE FREE Preview Day in Northern Virginia, to mark the start of “ozone” season.  During the summer when the ozone level is code red, bus rides are free to encourage people out of their cars.  I don’t actually know of anyone for whom this changes their behavior.  The people riding the buses are those who would be riding anyway, but on these days they do it on someone else’s dime.  I can’t find info on this, but I’m curious as to whether this is underwritten by taxpayers or private sponsorship.  Either way, my normal $1.35 hop on the bus to the Metro station was free today.

Then, when I got downtown, I took advantage of Starbuck’s current promotion for a free cup of their Pike Place blend.  I (along with thousands? millions? of other people) received a card a couple weeks ago redeemable for a free cup of coffee each Wednesday through May. 

One Year Blogiversary

A year ago today, I started this blog as a way to get back into the habit of writing on a regular basis.  To that end, it has been mostly successful.  I’d like to write a little more frequently, and time permitting, I will strive to do so this year.  I’m grateful for the handful of people who take the time to check for new posts–you know who you are.  (Um, because you are probably the only ones who will see this.)