It begins...

A friend recently forwarded an email to me titled "The Invisible Mother," a short essay comparing the tireless and often thankless job of a mother to the builders of Europe's great cathedrals. Both give their whole lives for a work they will never see finished, both make sacrifices and expect no credit, and both are fueled in their passion by the faith that the eyes of God see every detail. The writer of the essay was inspired by the thought that our endless efforts in motherhood, invisible as they may seem, are worth it and can make an enriching life.


For many of us, the way we choose to hold our invisibility at bay is by creating something tangible. For me, my days often end with knitting - my love of fiber and the need to do something relaxing end up producing something I can hold and look at. Nobody will know how many times I swept under the high chair that day, or how many toys I picked up, or how many times I tried to coax a "please" or "more" or "sorry" out of my 5 year old. But a darling, handmade infant hat? That you can see.


I start new projects every day, and my 10 year old does the same. In this process of creating (and yes, often not finishing our projects!) we connect with each other and a bigger picture of ourselves in the process. My plan for this blog is to share the projects that excite me and bring some accessible proof of my existence in this invisible world of mothering!


So, this blog is dedicated to the mothers out there whose days are filled with the minutia of tasks that build our children and our families. I often tell people that I haven't decided what I want to be when I grow up. But for now, I am the builder of a great cathedral. With every shoelace tied, lunch packed, and forehead kissed, I build.


And I can hardly wait to create something new...


Monday, January 23, 2012

Show and Tell

Brynn is apparently playing hooky today. She was snotty in the night, so I kept her home from school. She's been full of energy today, acting happy and cheerful, and I have only wiped her nose once. And she won't nap this afternoon. Totally should have sent her to school.


I've got a week's worth of show and tell for you, so let's jump right in. The big news is that Rowan won the 3rd place trophy at the Pinewood Derby on Saturday! She was thrilled (and Brad was baffled - he feels his skills in car-making are seriously lacking.) Here she is working on some fiery orange paint.


Here's the completed "haunted"car, and Rowan after her big win.
Rowan has also joined an after school club called "Kid's Kitchen" where they'll be meeting once a week to learn how to make snacks. Here's her rice-krispy treat snowman from the first meeting. Is he cute or what!?
This week I posted on Facebook that we have crocus blooming at our house. In January. Here's proof:
I have been busy, busy this last week working on photo albums and scrapbooks. (Note the leftover mason jars from Brownies-in-a-jar. No idea where to store those!
Family albums, DONE.
Rowan's birthday scrapbook, DONE.

Brynn's birthday scrapbook, DONE. Well, actually, I haven't found just the right stickers yet to embellish. When my new Ryka shoes are ready for pickup in Overland Park, I plan to hit Joann's for some sticker shopping.
Rowan and Brynn's portrait scrapbooks, updated and DONE.
Did I totally earn some time to myself to work a jigsaw puzzle. Oh yes, I did. The dark green areas just about killed me.
Now, I have also been working on the baby hat, and I admit it's been giving me some trouble. I added one earflap with no problem, but I counted the wrong direction when placing the second earflap and it ended up WAY not where it should have been. So, I picked it out carefully where I had started it, and decided to try and graft it where it should be rather than rip out the whole think, pick up new stitches and start over. There is one extra row now where the kitchener stitch was added, but I don't think it's too noticeable. The other problem is it's supposed to fit a 6 month old. Yeah, it fits Brynn, who is 3. Here's what happens when I try to have Brynn stand still and be a hat model...
So here's the hat, minus the pompoms I need to make. Now with fair isle, the pattern is pretty hard to mess with, and even going down in needle size is not going to get this hat down to 6 month size. Ideas, anyone? I'd really hate to buy more yarn, darnit, cause this stuff is warm and soft and washable! (Keep in mind, this hasn't been blocked and looks a bit lumpy...)
So last night I was itching to sit and knit and didn't have a single project to work on (making pompoms does not count as knitting.) My brain does not want to actually plan projects at 8:30pm, so I've got to come up with a project this afternoon before my knitting brain shuts down.) Little Miss No-Nap is not cooperating!

1 comment:

  1. You might be surprised how much smaller a hat going down one needle size might produce. I made the wonderful Marsan Watchcap in a man size and went down one needle size and it fit both Colin and Miles! By the way, it is a FINE looking hat! They are going to love it, no matter what. It's always so fun to read your posts and find out what is going on at the Knotty Knitter's residence! :) Love the snowman ( he looks like an owl, too ), and the car, the albums, all your business puts me to shame. :) I DO work a small puzzle every night tho.... :)
    XOX

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