Recently...

I may have mentioned that recently I've felt things have been moving along at a good clip in the A household. Today has been particularly draining. But! We are not defeated...only slightly discouraged. 

(...and also feeling twitchy since the upstairs smoke detector - wired into our house's electrical system - is chirping its high pitched squeaky chirp every so often...)

I thought I would remind myself and let you, dear reader (really, it's just you, right Cristina?!) in on stuff that has been carrying on despite everything else. No one minds poor quality iPad pictures, right?

I helped another mom organize a local homeschoolers used book sale. I sold many things and enjoyed catching up with other local moms. I realized it's been quite a while since we all gathered in one place with one focus. 

I prepared a special treat for dinner with friends. There was chocolate involved after the injections. These friends love my teenagers and I love them for it even more. The Girl spent a weekend day with said friends; made cupcakes and a banana cake, stayed for dinner and came home late. There is talk of the teens camping for a week with these friends. I am reminded that good friends are a blessing. 

Mr. A and I were killing time out of town while The Girl was at her fencing lesson one day and we came across this chart in a marine supply store. It was the only chart in chart form, the rest of the charts they sold were in book form. This only chart shows the bodies of water which surround the immediate area in which we live. It's water proof, as charts are, and it shows where to find the fish - something you don't usually see. Mr. A and I are very much looking forward to using it to within an inch of its life this summer. I will be kayaking and he will be fishing. 

Our new fridge finally did show up a day late...Did I mention that already? I am an ungrateful, shallow person. The new fridge is smaller inside and noisier than the old beast was. I'm sure if I did not have a new home and appliances looming on my horizon, I would be more grateful. And I AM grateful that the old fridge was replaced. But I am reminded of the poor, unfortunate souls who will be moving in after we leave and who will have to put up with shoddy building maintenance and irresponsible owners and bad neighbours and, and, and. 

The Girl continues to fence. Her session is winding down and we are learning the ebb and flow of the fencing season. She is a little disappointed in us (a 'little' as in it's been a 'little' colder and snowier than normal this winter) as she will be missing the end of season tournaments due to timing and finances and her own readiness. Next season, I will try to be a better fencing mom and spread out the  tournament resources over the entire season instead of using them up as quickly as we did this year. And a better fencing mom would have encouraged more regular fitness training over the winter months had she been aware that a fencing teen was looking forward to early Spring tournaments. 

The dogs are beginning to behave differently now that the house is being packed up. There's a lot of dust and cleaning and two growing stacks of boxes and a shrinking living area. Normally, they lounge quite contentedly wherever we happen to be in the house. In this photo, they were lounging while I was showering. Comfy dogs. The white dog is older and I worry that her health won't hold up over the next months.

St. Patrick's Day cupcakes were underwhelming. Although, the new icing (Lemon Cream Cheese) was a hit and will be my go-to icing from now on. I may have mentioned these already...

Newspaper delivery has much to be desired lately. After this week's interesting delivery, I emailed the person in charge of delivery to inquire if there was a reason the delivery person could not use the mailbox. I wish I could have got a good picture of the page that landed, somehow, on the garage roof. 

The syrup fairy showed up at my house, saving me much angst and gnashing of teeth! We get our annual maple syrup supply from private people who get enjoyment out of the craziness that is schlepping through mud and slush in a mostly freezing forrest tending a fire for all the daylight hours. This sugaring season is starting late and I've run out of last year's supply. My good friend J. saw my Facebook post wishing that the current season could, please, get underway. She dropped off a can of local syrup, disguised in a packing box, so I can at least have a batch of pancakes or two before this year's supply gets made. Again with the friends-blessing thing. 

There's a new book club brewing in my neighbourhood. My current book club is thinking of crashing it as it sounds really good. Current book club is reading Calculating God by someone Sawyer. Robert J.? It's not a book I normally would have been drawn to, but I am giving it a go. Sort of. I've managed about 6 pages in short bursts of 5 or 6 paragraphs at a time. How to finish it by our meeting this Wednesday? Maybe I could finish it by the 3rd? Maybe I could read a magazine or the grocery flyer and discuss that instead....

Knitting continues at about my current pace of reading. I've started a Wild Stripes baby blanket as my brother and sister-in-law have just announced their first. Long awaited by extended family; just a bit of a surprise for them. Wild Stripes is awesome and fun, a quick Google or a peek on Ravelry will show off the finished product. I've been smacked with a Strange Notion for this baby, though. I believe it needs a Shetland Shawl. Sister-In-Law comes from a Scottish family. Her dad was a footballer for the national team once upon a time. Scheduled arrival is September 2014, so realistically would I be able to finish knitting a traditional lace masterpiece by then? Probably not. A Christmas gift is a more likely target to aim for. Strange Notion was accompanied by the idea of a baby shawl made using a Scottish pattern and knit in a Canadian yarn. An initial poke around Ravelry has yielded three attractive choices of pattern: the Heirloom Lace Shawl by Mrs. Rose Designs, the Queen Susan Shawl and the Sydney Opera House Heirloom Lace Shawl also by Mrs. Rose. 

I've just downloaded the Queen Susan pattern...all 73 pages of it. Most knitting patterns are well under 10 pages. Still, I'm not put off by this Strange Notion. Curious. 

Ok, enough. You're updated. And I am on to the regular tasks of teenage management, visiting with husband and dinner. 

♥Mrs. A.