US Hospitals Vs UK Hospitals

I have been meaning to write something for a while but there is always something else today, then 2 days ago I was stopped in my tracks and now I want to write this down so I remember it.  My little baby girl arrived 10 days early so will be with us for Christmas so I am taking it easy now.  And I am glad for it, my body is wrecked.  That was hard and all I could think at the time was, I am too old for this, this hurts more than last time.  And after the event to add insult to injury are more pains - lower abdo. contraction pains, sore nipples and my sons asking why I still am fat..... *sigh*.  The hospital was fantastic and I probably should have just stayed in for longer than a night but they were kinda driving me mad forever checking on me.  And my middle son has a bad cough so couldn't visit and I wanted them to meet their sister. But it was like a hotel, I felt really cared for.  I know I only have the NHS to compare it to and they are brilliant but I always felt like a number and in the way.  Last time I was told to go home and if I had listened to them would have had my child on a roundabout a Sprucefield in rush hour, as it was, I was virtually giving birth in the corridor and felt as if they didn't really believe me when I said it was going to be soon - as if I was being a fuss pot.  Here it was very different, I felt like I had an army around me caring for me, washing me down (they were mad for that, in the NHS they would have let you sit in your own blood and not really have cared) and changing me.  Lovely food, including a candlelit (albeit battery operated tea light) for me and my husband in the evening.  A working tv that I didn't have use prepay cards for that didn't always work, a cool electric bed, my own room and they provided a nightie, bed socks, clothes and nappies for the baby, and pull out chair for the husband to stay over night.   He didn't but that's not the point.  So now I am home. It feels weird being here with no extended family. My mum is due over next week but we get to have Christmas with our new member and that makes it really special.  This year I already got what I wanted for Christmas.  And am so glad not to be pregnant any more.  That was a tough one....

Number plates

I have gotten into the habit of reading people's car number plates.  When I first came here I thought it would be cool to have a personalised number plate, saying OUCH or SPEEDEMON, or whatever.  But as time has gone on, and I have stared at various versions I have decided they are a total waste.  They cost $100 odd  PER YEAR and because all the cool words are taken, the spellings used generally make little sense.  All I think of when I see them is the moment of hilarity when the new owner of the number plate gets them.  And then it is gone, and it becomes rather ludicrous.  Instead they are followed about by people with screwed up faces trying to work out what MYCHAIT actually means, or MRKOOLZ.  Our neighbours have one that says JSTSONS and for the longest time I read it to be JETSONS and thought it was their surname, it actually means Just sons, as they only have boys, but it seems a bit strange to spend a few hundred dollars each year to announce this to strangers.  Perhaps the ones the same I <3 JDB or JDB <3 FOS, is quite sweet and touching that they want to declare their love but still, spend the money on a ring or a nice meal or something.

Sorry, feeling cynical today and kept reading MYCHAIT as my shite, rather than My Chai Tea, and wondered why you would want to declare that on your car.......

Other gems I have seen are H8 WINTER, really, you feel the need to spend a hundred odd dollars per year to declare this???  LEAF GRN and GRVYMOM - could be 'gravy mom' - hard to know for sure.

Monday lemons and big feet

Today when I went to put on my winter boots I found I couldn't  :-(  My feet have swollen and I am resolved to wear my (stinky) summer sandals for a while longer until the problem is solved (i.e. I buy new shoes - have my eye on a pair that cost only (!!) $115, Clarks of course).  So I had to wear a pair I bought for my last pregnancy that are totally unsuitable, boots about and inch high. I am not a heel wearer and a trip to the park this morning has caused them to be added to the Goodwill pile.

Anyhow, I did some post-weekend tidying.  I have been avoiding bending over, as it hurts my back, so as a result a lot of stuff has accumulated on the floor.  So I had a big tidy today, and whilst in the mood picked a few lemons to put in the new (to us) freezer.  Apparently lemon season is around December, and in the summer, when you want to make lemonade and gin and tonics there are no lemons.  So apparently the answer is to freeze them.  As we are in the process of filling the freeze, in preparation for the new baby I decided to add a few lemons.  This time last year (our first year here) there weren't many lemons, but this year the tree is laden.

Peace

The two older boys are friends with 2 brothers of the same age and their mum has asked them all for a playdate. She has just had number 3 and knows how it feels, so even picked up my number 3.  She is an angel.  People here have been great at helping out with the kids, taking them off my hands to give me a break.  I think, bar one or two people at home, that happens less.  I think perhaps the distance we live from good friends is probably partly to do with it, people live more densely populated here so we know people who live closer, plus the boys are older, so its easier to have play dates but definitely there was a small pool of people I could rely on at home, where as here its a bit bigger and people offer more.  I don't think that is a reflection on US vs UK as I know I am more likely to offer to take other people's children here as a) the house is bigger and b) they can play outside c) the children are older so tend to occupy each other more, rather than me.

I got an email from a friend at home today, it was so lovely to hear her craic.  I really miss friends from home and  all about their lives.  This friend in particular is very honest and open and doesn't pretend her life is something it isn't.  She has had her struggles and still does and sometimes you need to hear that just so you know your own struggles are normal.  Not everyone is super mum.   Plus she does it with a sense of humour, and I just know that we would be laughing our legs off if the conversation were in person, and trying to top each other with the ridiculous situations we end up in with our families.

Anyhow, I am going to take the time now to do some craft stuff, I tried this morning but the baby was clambering over me and fiddling with sewing boxes and then I got tired so we had a joint nap.....  I wont miss the way tiredness just over comes you when you are pregnant once this is all over.... but when might that be?  After birth comes the night feeds and all that caper.  Hmmm

Googleween

So here is a totally unique experience, Halloween Google style.  So today we went, along with Darth Vader, Super Mario and a sort of dinosaur/frog/monster to check out the activities, and of course, in Google style everything was in abundance, well executed, well attended and, most importantly free.  It has struck me that many of the things Google does, and make available could be done over in the UK too, the volleyball courts, the infinity swimming pools, ping pong tables, massage chairs, electric pianos (with headphones) etc etc except for A) the cost to the company, it would have to be a very successful, profitable company B) better weather.  I think the unpredictable nature of the UK weather there are things that are done over here that just couldnt be done at home, swimming in external infinity pools in the rain just doesnt appeal..... :-(  Some great costumes though, many little mermaids and various star wars characters (including a baby dressed as Yoda - cool!), but the best of the day was the banana (adult) holding their son, dressed as a monkey :-)  I liked that a lot!  Also i loved the reptile area, a giant tortoise, geckos, turtles, tarantualas, many many snakes including a couple of Boas - they were amazing, many of these we could touch, it was great to see the large tortoise.  Well done Google, a good event!

Catch up, catch up

Ooo time is slipping by.  I keep meaning to write but then the need to do something else over takes me. Right now I had promised myself I was going to gen up on Richard III - I am going to see it with KEVIN SPACEY in it in San Fran on Wed night and I dont know the play at all.... Shakespeare is always better if you have a clue about what is going on!  I love Hamlet, but studied it to death for A Level.  Anyhow, on top of that I have been nesting like mad, so we have a lot of little chores completed, patching boys holey trousers, moving furniture, sourcing furniture solutions (fingers crossed new bunk bed tonight to help tidy the mess that is Son#1's room), clearing out garage, organising all the paper work that comes home from school - etc etc.  AND I am getting into the swing of things preparing for the Christmas sale.  I was at pottery last night and stayed later than I expected but paid the price later from too much standing (v achy sore back), although I did get tree decs made, 2 clocks and a mug glazed and 2 more mugs built....  Also we have the count down to Halloween so that involves getting costumes sorted out (Check), treats bought (er, not check), and some pumpkin cake made, and pot luck food for scouts decided upon, bought then prepared..... still a few things to get done there.  Also, rather annoyingly the camera has mysteriously bust. so I need to source and buy a new one, but the flaw in that plan is NO MUN, luckily it was just a 'cheap' (ie $100, gulp) one.   Hmmmmm need to have a think about that......  Have decided to sell my didge internet radio as I am now relying on my ipod and a ipod dock for BBC radio 2 and its is doing quite well, it even seems to do Listen Again shows, which it didn't do before, so the Internet Radio is now redundant.  Don't think I will get it in time for the class Halloween party on Friday tho in order that I can buy a new camera....

Tiredness and time

Oh it really hit me yesterday, I woke up sore and hobbled about all day, then as the day wore on I because hit with the full force of tiredness.  I dragged myself to pottery and only stayed 2 instead of 3 hours.  Then last night, despite my tiredness had the worst sleep ever. So this is it, for the next 2.5 months...... It seems the only decent sleep I get is my nap in the middle of the day.  And the time, where is it going to, everything seems to be crammed into the little empty chunks.  I have started reading Neglected, by Lisa Genova, and so far it is about a mum of 3 with a high powered job and huge financial commitments, and the lifestyle she maintains on a daily basis makes me think a) she is mad, really really mad b) I must be lazy.   I don't (think) I judge working mums, I just dont know where they get the energy. I am usually there for the kids but even then don't have the energy to listen to everything or pay attention all the time. I am resentful I don't have as much time as I'd like to be a human being, so how would I cope if I had a job on top of all that.  And the ridiculous thing is that I kind of yearn to have a bit of an income and a bit of self worth, that I think I could only get through some kind of job.  I thin the answer might be self employment, in an area I really enjoy, which is why I am pursing crafty things, but that is me and all the other stay at home mums so Lord knows how I would  make it work vs all the other stay at home mums in the same boat.  I have started putting together some things pottery and crochet-wise for a Christmas craft fair being organised by the boys PTA but I really need to ramp up production as the fair is on 1 Dec and come the evening (optimum crafting time) I am usually bushed and during the day I am usually busy.  Come on Kirsten, sort it out!!!!

Halloween

We've been here just over a year now, so its interesting to see all the different holiday preparations all over again.  We started really with 4th July, then Labor day now Halloween is ramping up.  Already, a month before the big event people are decorating their homes and Halloween paraphernalia has been on sale for at least a month already.  Halloween is big here.  Growing up in England, for me, Guy Fawkes night was always bigger, but in NI and Ireland Halloween has been quite the event the last few years, especially in Derry!  But I think we are all being subjected to the influence of our transatlantic cousins and now we are seeing more and more Halloween celebrations over in the UK.  Here, they have the Thanksgiving/Fall celebrations, and the decorations are subtly different, still plenty of orange and brown/black colours but the Thanksgiving decorations involve turkeys and scarecrows; Halloween is more witches and goolies and ghosts.  The two older boys will both have been on visits to pumpkin farms by the end of today, and all over the place are 'fake' pumpkin patches, that will no doubt turn into Christmas tree farms once Halloween is over.

Eoin came home yesterday from a trip with the scouts, laden with his own enormous pumpkin (eek, what am I going to do with it - quick, need a recipe for pumpkin pie), and tales of hay rides and pumpkin shooting.  When asked what he shot the pumpkin with the said 'a pumpkin gun of course', yes of course, silly me.  I expect Finn to come home from school today with another, hopefully smaller pumpkin after his class trip, but these are things they would definitely not get to do a home.  Subtle differences.  At home the weather is very autumny, rainy and windy - here it is cooler but pleasant and sunny, still wearing short sleeves most of the time and summer pjs still.

Differences

Its always in the evening when the flesh is weak.  I can not resist something sweet to eat with my cup of tea, once the hard work is done and the children are in bed, I can relax and have a treat (without having to answer questions about it, or share it, or give it to someone else) and my husband has brought home from Trader Joes some Joe Joes......  oo they are dangerously morish.

They are just like the custard creams we would have had back home, with a lovely sweet creamy sandwich filling.  All totally bad for you.  And Trader Joes has this sort of aura about it, so you feel anything you buy from TJs is healthy.  Of course it isn't (chocolate covered cherries for eg) but its a lovely store to shop in.  It epitomises the America I have become familiar with, very helpful cheery staff (Vs grumpy unhelpful UK versions), fun environment and lovely food.  They make it fun for the kids (acknowledging that parents have to shop with kids they don't just do it for a laugh) by hiding an animal (monkey in one store, frog in another) for the children to find on each visit, they get a small treat if they spot the toy.  Its just a great shop.  If I could just avoid the Joe Joes.......

Noo crochet project

After the joy of choosing my next project (what to do what to do!) I always seem to deliberate for a day or so whilst I parse the actual AMOUNT of squares or lines or what ever I will need to do.  It always seems endless.  Then I get stuck in.  After counting about 119 squares to be done for my new project I started with small targets 4 a day, and with the occasional increase/decrease of this amount I seem to be making headway, which always spurs me on a bit.  As it a baby blanket for the new baby (girl) and not being a girly girl myself I have gone for a blue pink mix, but am joining with pink, and will end up with a pink border of some sort.

 I am thinking of a cream heart for the middle with a pink surround to it.  So last night I was designing (yes me!) a pattern for that using XL on the computer.  Fingers crossed.  I am going to give that a go today.

I am not sure how to make it from a square into an oblong, probably with a build up of rows at either end or something.

Country Lane Afghan

 I have used a combination of two pattern designs for my blanket.  I couldn't decide between the blanket above and this one....... so I have merged them.  I prefer the idea of a border rather than the uneven edge of the Country Lane Afghan (btw how do you define an Afghan?  I thought Afghan was a stitch, but it seems over here - the US - anyway, it seems any kind of crocheted blanket.

Granny Square Afghan
from 10-20-30 Minutes to Learn to Crochet (Leisure Arts)

Movements

At 6 months the days are now taking their toll.  Not to mention the crazy temperatures we have been having with no air con to help ease the day on....The boys were playing football in 100degrees earlier this week. Anyhow, beginning to notice the swollen feet and the aching joints at the end of the day. And last night, even the soon to be new addition started to add her 'voice' to the chorus and gave me a few almighty jabs from the inside out.  Ouch!

Today an opportunity arose that has really peaked my interest (I don't know if I have spelt that correctly, I think it might 'piqued').  Someone from the boys school has put forward a suggestion of a Holiday (ie Christmas) craft fair.  And I think I might just go for it.  Between crocheting and ceramics I think I might be able to cobble some kind of stock together.  And the slab building course has helped with my confidence in the ceramics department, I actually feel like I made some things I actually like, the stuff I throw it a bit amateur.  I have 2 months to get on with things......

Slab building

I have just come into the garden and after a few moments noticed a woodpecker in the tree above me!  When I called out the family for a look it turned out Mr Woodpecker was there too - with a lovely red cap on his head.  Sadly my camera doesn't have the ability to take good photos at that distance so I didnt bother but it was lovely to see them.....

Middle spotted woodpecker.  I don't know if this is the right species but Mr Woodpecker looked like this!

Yesterday I did a 6 hour class on slab building.  I have done this sort of thing before but have been admiring the work of the teacher, Elaine Pinkernell, and for a while been thinking I need to move off the wheel (not to mention with my ever increasing belly size I wont be able to reach the wheel soon!) as I keep making useless bowls and crap mugs.  I like the freestyle, randomness of Pink's work and I had a ball yesterday with stamps!  Whilst, like most things it takes practice, it was a relatively easy process as there was such freedom in coming up the designs on the pieces we built.  And Pink very kindly supplied us with a range of templates that helped the process a lot!  Obviously mistakes were made, but slab building is much more forgiving than wheel work, and as I was making patch work mugs anyway any problem areas could soon be patched.  Whilst the 2 mugs I built were rather large and may be more suitable for beer than coffee, at the end of the day I wasn't cringing at my work, which is a definite plus.  Usually, I sneak my work away from the pottery and more recent attempts could be bettered by a high schooler I am sure.....

Elaine Pinkernell's wall plaque.
I love the amazing contrasting colours.

A couple of Elaine's mugs.
I'll post my versions when they get fired and glazed!

'Frisco & Labor day

Here's something different to home, instead of August bank holiday they have Labor day - which is the first Monday in September. It is supposed to mark the social and economic contribution of The Workers but more commonly known as the end of summer.  For us, it was a much needed extra weekend day as, after two weeks of school the boys were very tired (and grumpy and disagreeable) and an extra days rest seems to have put them back on track.  Especially son #2 who is not really used to the new, longer days now he is at Kinder.

I have to admit, I prefer the cooler temps of the San Francisco, but on Labor day itself it was quite sunny and we enjoyed a lovely walk down from Presido park to the touristy wharf and back again for some kite flying on the windy bay shore :-)  The weather was even clear enough so you can see Golden Gate bridge in the background :-)

Any other name

Since before the birth of my last child (a son) I had decided my daughter was going to be called Rose.  I had always like the flower names - daisy, lily, Iris but the only one that didnt seem too frilly and twee or really old-lady-ish was Rose.  Now I know I am having a girl. I am keeping this to myself (well, husband knows) but looking forward to delighting everyone when she comes along, as we are an all boy family - well, all boy grandchildren and no more likely.....But a few things have happened lately that have made me wobble on the name.  People I know keep calling their pets Rose or Rosy (a likely pet name should we have a Rose) and then, just the other day someone mentioned Rose West.  That has really put the wobble on, why would I want to name a child after such a horrendous person?  But the other options, well I like Maura and Ellen, but husband does not, which kinda nixes them.  So is it back to the drawing board?  Eva, Evie, Edie, Isabella - none of these really jump out at me.  Am I going to have to start reading baby name books for girls???? Yeuch.  Oh, well we have another 4 months so lets just see.....

A little more crochet

Work on my rippling blanket has been sporadic this summer but I think I am getting there.  A final push there before we went on hols and a bit of tidying up and it came away with us, with the intention that I do some more but it was too twiggy and dusty, so no crochet was done whilst on hols. Since I have been home I have started at it again, spurred on by the intention to start something new soon, and indeed I have been enjoying picking the something new (a baby blanket?  some Chrimbo items? what to do, what to do???) and now I have run out of a couple of colours and the shop no longer stocks them (I tend to buy one ball at a time, using my 40% off one item voucher.....frugal.) so I have sent off for the last 2 balls of wool, and whilst I await their arrival I have tentatively started my new project (I figured I would get stuck into baby blanket as there are lots of small squares to it).  Hurray.  But in my searches I found this on Attic 24.

Ages ago I wanted one of these as they are great for keeping the pot warm for longer, and wanted a friend of mine to knit it.  At the time I could not crochet, and knitting still scares me.  Well, I didn't ever get round to getting it sorted out and we have since moved away from cold NI and have a new coffee pot, but I am delighted to see this and might give it a go some time.  So thanks Attic for completing the project and inspiring me (again), as well as letting me know where to find the pattern (Nicki Trench's book Cute and Easy Crochet).

1st Home grown tomatoes of the year, indeed, of my life!

The title says it all - its so exciting to have been able to grow tomatoes!  At home I would have need a green house, we don't have one. Here, they grew outside in the raised bed and survived the snails!

And look what I found later!  Although I had to fight my way through the yellow tomato plants...

Time to document some pots...

The time has come to document a few pots and the colours I have used just so I can avoid/replicate in the future....

This is my 1st attempt at Roy's mug Big Sur, with Ida's White and Jade.  Needs work!

I really like these colours together - Big Sur with Jade and Deep Aqua

And again

A nicely shaped bowl, a bit too much clay used (could have been thinner) but looks well - Big Sur with Ida's white and Jade, again.

Doing a bit of colour experimentation here - nave with a pool of rutille - should have omitted the rutille!

and on the outside - black.

Happy Holidays

Hurray, we are back from our hols - not hurray we are back, but hurray it was a good holiday.  I feel revitalised and less stressed.  I knew I was stressed but not quite how - it took a couple of days for me to chill.  We went on a YMCA Family holiday to ease us in to the camping habits common with Americans.  Like every thing they do things with maximum effort, so camping stores have all manner of different camping gadgets, and stuff for white water rafting, snow shoes, mountaineering... So we stayed in a (very dusty) cabin, which suited us as it gave us the room to keep our stuff and not forever bumping into each other.  The location was beautiful, right on a lake edge completely surrounded by sugar pines and sequoia trees, and it was a private location, so apart from stray hikers and people from other Y camps about the lake (like Skate board camp!) we had the place to ourselves.

 I had forgotten what quiet was like.  There was no tv, phones and apart from the odd bit of ipod watching to placate over tired toddlers we were electronic free.  In the mornings there was a kids camp, which was fantastic, and allowed me to indulge in a bit of crafty stuff in the craft shed - I made a stained glass dangly heart, started a mosiac (which my 7 year old finished), made a few hemp bracelets and did a bit of tie tye!  So good for the soul. Other activities included archery, fishing, which is surprisingly enjoyable, swimming in the lake (I swam across it twice!), hiking, boating, or just nothing.  I got a whole book read.....  So it has made me realise, I really do need to get some help looking after the children, I was so stressed before I went, I never got away from teh children and spent all my time waiting to collect them or drop them off, I did nothing that fed my soul.  So, I have come back and am not tired all day like I was before.  I will try and keep up the swimming and keep the telly off at night, do more craft and check out eating wheat grass (they sell it in Nob Hills)....  Lets just see shall we!

Exhaustion

I was watching a Dr Oz programme last night, something I rarely do, but this one struck a cord.  They asked a load of women to describe their energy levels and I was surprised to see how many felt the same as I do, wiped out, exhausted, struggling through the day etc etc.  Then, dear old Dr Oz went on to suggest solutions, in particular he introduced a guy (Jim Caras) who specialised in this area (and of course had written a book

'The 7 Day Energy Surge'), he had astoundingly white teeth, a bit like a cheesy George Clooney. Anyways, then they went through 5 stages to improve your energy levels and they were

1) eat a balanced breakfast - they suggested a home made muesli (I am too lazy for this, I wonder if cornflakes is ok....)

2) taking magnesium and Tyrosine (?) suppliments

3) drinking wheat grass about 4pm when energy levels dip, instead of reaching for a coffee, or if you had to drink coffee make it half coffee and half LOW (not non) fat milk.

4) switching tv/computers off 2 hours before bed

5) listening to music - have it on in the back ground, about 45 mins before bed to help relax.

also there were other things like, when you wake up lie for a few minutes put your hands over your eyes and take 5 deep breaths, or try and avoid switching lights on if you have to get up in the night, use night lights.

Sooooo last night I switched off the telly and put on a bit of classical (after a while I changed it to a bit of gentle contemp music so I could sing along), had a shower and, because telly wasn't on, did a few jobs - tidying, putting on washing. It struck me that if the telly didn't pin me to the couch I ended up doing more tasks rather than chilling, for the want of something to do, although I understand that telly would stimulate the brain for longer thus making relaxation harder. Anyways, I woke up this morning feeling fresher - I am not sure if this is because of the pre=bed shower, which I always find refreshing. I would like to try the wheat grass, and know they sell it in the local super market but I am not sure how to process it..... Another problem is, some evening I would like to watch telly, does that mean I have to sacrifice a good nights' sleep. Anyhow, what ever I am will ing to try it all as the tiredness is crippling, I mean I know I am pregnant but it is such a struggle getting through the day and I just dont have the energy for the children... so fingers crossed.

Soccer and Drive throughs

This week is a good week for holiday camps - both older boys are at a camp that starts and ends at the same time, plus another parent is sharing the pick up/drop offs, so there is less frantic driving about and wasting time waiting to drive about.  They are both at soccer camp, their first real experience of soccer and its is going well.  Apart from spending the morning outside running about with nothing but fresh fruit and water they are enjoying it.  Is great.  Then a break and in the afternoon swimming (in the community centre out door pool!).  So today I decided to go to a different Michaels to look for some yarn that I need to continue my zig zaggery.  My local Michaels no longer stocks it, so I thought this might and, eek, this doesn't either.  I fear the end of this blanket is nigh.  So to commiserate I went to the DRIVE THROUGH Starbucks, which , with my toddler, is a god send.  My 3 shop threshold has dropped to 2, as he will no longer be contained in either buggy or trolley, and tends to either refuse to move or run off at tangents, which turns me into a distracted nervous wreck and renders me unable to shop for much as I just cant concentrate on getting the good deals, or even the regular deals, or right deals for that matter.  So a DRIVE THROUGH Starbucks is just fantastic, except for the protesting toddler in the back who wants this, that and the other, that is never actually in the car. Anyhow, we are home now and I have to plan my next project due to impending end of zig zag blanket.

Advancements in zig zaggery

I have just changed out of my new jammies.  I love the feeling of new jammies, and could wear them the whole day but the prospect of having new knick knacks to put on was also a delight.  Has been a bit of a quandary situation as, being in a 'foreign' country not knowing where one buy such things when there is no Marksies or Dunnes about!  Eek.  I did see some scrumptious jammies in a catalogue that I have fallen in love with (but never bought from as v expensive!) called Garnet Hill but they were 29 dollars !! and that was when they were reduced, so quite pleased I got 2 pairs for $24.  Turns out the answer is Walmart - not very chic but lovely all the same.  We had a HORRIFIC family shop there yesterday, we had to get stuff for our hols including shoes for all the little ones, so we /all/ had to go.  I am quite well used to shopping with 3 children, but its still, a challenge, as none of them will stay in the trolley, or they all want to be in the trolley and there is only 2 spaces.  Hubby did not handle so well, and as a result it was quite stressful. BUT I persevered, as its quite a trek to this shop and I really didn't want to have to go back this week, so pretty much got all we needed.  The rest of the day was under a rain cloud though :-(

Anyways, now I am dressed and all the boys have gone to the park and I have a bit of time Home Alone - very rare and very precious, also I don't know how long they will be, so am trying to cram loads in.  Kettle has just popped so I will be back in a mo with a cuppa......

Oh they are home and I have nothing written!

So I have discovered something in my ventures in zig zaggery.....  When I was first looking at the instructions, it says, somewhere, to do a few try outs just to get into the swing of things.  Of course I am far too impatient for that so it has take me quite a few rows and colours to finally get into a comfortable understanding of the 'flow' of the pattern.  As you can see in the pattern picture in Attic 24 there is a lovely neat orderly row of ripples, well mine has only been like this for the last 15 rows or so...  For a while I was despairing, and part of the reason I took I hiatus from rippling was that, although I was counting religiously, my ripples were STRAIGHTENING!  Argh.  Anyhow, I have discovered that I should be increasing and decreasing my lines in the same place as the lines below, and just using the counting as a rough guide.  As a result, the ripples lie much more uniformly. I don't mind so much, I am going to keep this blanket for me and me alone, so I can live with its imperfections.  Previous blankets (#1 and #2) were sent off as presents - both to the UK.  I am quite startled about how long it takes to post packages to the UK (I was thinking a week and in some cases it has been 3 months, and the second package hasn't even arrived yet!!!).  I finished the baby blanket with a scalloped edge but for some reason didn't get a picture of it, duh!

Blanket #1

Blanket #2

Anyway, as a result this experiment in zig zaggery has made me more confident about doing rows in crochet, and controlling the size.  Until now,  I have found squares more controllable because they start from the centre and go out and are therefore easier to make into uniform square.

Zig zaggery and Summer hols

Very excited about our family summer holiday in a couple of weeks!  We have organised to go on a YMCA family holiday!  They don't have these at home, but I am quite attracted to the Family aspect of it, and the fact I don't have to do any catering - the food is included, plus they have a kids club in the morning, ( I didn't know that when I booked) and organised activities, but not so organised that we cant go off and please ourselves.....  So I have been enjoying list making and researching things we need to buy and bring, I love that part of a trip (mostly the buying to be fair).  Its a bit of a trek away (6 hours and we are still in California when we get there!) but we are game!  Its a camp, so there will be lots of fresh air and outsidey ness, ending with a camp fire and singsong every evening!  Very Girl Guides :-)  So, along with this - the need to have spare blankets for all, and the fact a friend has admired and been inspired by my own zig zaggy blanket, which has been abandoned for the past couple of months, I am pushing on with my blanket zaggery.  Slightly deterred today when I paid a visit to Michaels and one of the colours I have been using is no longer there, but not put off, I found another similiar and will get on with things!  Anyhow, I smell a nappy so I'd better go. :-\

The seaside

I have been putting it off as I am not a fan but this week I decided we should get a day by the sea seeing as y'know, its good weather pretty much guaranteed and days at the beach are part and parcel of  being a child and summer holidays.  So, I packed a picnic, and a sun cream, cozzies, towel etc etc and headed west.  Now we haven't really been to the beach here much and certainly not locally so I didn't really know where I was going.  A few people had mentioned places and so I thought I'd wing it.  I really didn't want to go to the boardwalk as it would have been too difficult to manage 3 children and loads of rides they were mostly too small to go on unaccompanied, so we hung a left and headed up the coast a teeny way.  We found a beach, covered in lovelies in their skimpy togs and staked our place with the picnic blanket.  It actually turned out quite well, there was far too much sand for my liking (I prefer to walk along windswept beaches in a big warm coat, off season) but it wasn't too bad, there was no sun burn, and fun - I even caught myself planning my next trip.  So whilst I am not a full convert (I think I am too old and set in my ways), we may get more than the token One beach trip per summer trip out of me.  I think we need some body boards tho, seeing as we are in surfer territory we might as well get those boys in the mood!

Rutille

Feeling nervous about my use of rutille this evening in pottery.  It runs like a bugger and the last time I used it it ran all over the  shelves and I got told off.  So this time Iwent mad rubbing it off.  I hope I've done enough, but then not too much that it actually makes difference.  I am so rubbish at glazing.... :-(

This looks good....

but look at its drippy...

chippy bottom, where its had to be broken off
the shelves :-(  Not a good look.

this is Just rutille, with no under colour

The lovely effect rutille gives,
this is over Woo Blue.

its great for dribbling....

some egs of Better Rutilling

Confessions from Real Mums

I found this in a free magazine when I first arrived here, I was quite homesick and resentful that I had had to give up my support network and all the things I had planned ahead for (2 year waiting lists for swimming lessons), and so when I read this it made me laugh hysterically but then this only brought on tears.  Which was  a bit embarrassing as I was in a coffee shop.  A year later its still funny but my reaction is not so strong, I still miss home and am lonely for my friends but have some kind of support network built up now, even if it is the occasional park play date or a guitar/pottery lesson.  I still miss my friends and resent my husband for getting to spend time away from the kids. Sorry dear.

24 hr Cold Turkey

This one has proved to be a toughy, trying to extract the soother/dummy/dooody from child #3.  The other 2 were quite straight forward and #2 gave his up just before he was 2.  Number 3 was 3 in June and is more 'vocal' than the other two and was very definite about wanting his doooody when ever he didn't have it.  I was worried.  But the other day he was looking for his doody and it couldn't be found (it was on the floor next to the fridge) and once I showed him the bowl where it is kept when not in use, and offered him the two stand by doodies which he turned his nose up at as 'someone' has bitten into them, he seemed to accept that they had gone.  I took this as an opportunity to never give his doody back to him, and after 2 nights of no doody it seems to be working...... (yay!).

Feeling the same

Still feeling the same, but more introspective than sorry for myself - I hate reading blogs from people feeling sorry for themselves.  So I have gone back to reading the book by, oh I have forgotten his name, but its about meditating for 10 mins every day to help put things into perspective. I don't and never have meditated but just feel I have no space in my head, and the last couple of days been grumpy with the (tired) boys - its no way to go on. I also picked up a leaflet the other evening when we were out for our meal about the mediation place near here, so am thinking of giving it a go to.  What was that blokes name....*quick google* Andy Puddicome - great name.  I am finding it slow going, but I downloaded the kindle version and put it on my ipod as I don't have a kindle, so its kinda tiny.  Anyhow, I have to get out my pjs - the boys all popped out for a bit to give me a bit alone (seriously, I am going kinda nuts at the mo...) and I want to take the bigger boys to the mosiac making workshop thing at a local Lakeshore learning. I've never been there before so its an excuse for a nose.  I think its a cross between Early Learning centre and some kind of teachers resource centre.  Right, get dressed!

pottery problems

Kids have been driving me crackers today, late night (for them) last night after we went out for something to eat as a special occasion, to Hobees (hmm, well, tried it once, dont need to bother going again now). Anyhow, as a result, uncooperative, grumpy children, despite a trip to the park to meet up with friends today.  By the end of the day I had had enough,(a trip to the supermarket really helped things along, always a pleasure with 3 children) so went straight off to pottery as soon as we got back from their swimming lessons (corralling a tied, mischievous 2 year old around the edge of a swimming pool = not fun).  Anyhow, I got there and first thing I did was check the glazing shelves to find the mugs I had glazed had not gone well, and a grumpy note telling me what I had done wrong, then I went into the studio and was told the same thing again, this time in front of everyone in the room - beamer.  It was a different night to the night I usually go, which makes me nervous, just a comfort zone thing I guess, with different people around I don't know so well.  Anyway, I dont mind making mistakes and non perfect stuff, I am learning after all, sometimes the teachers try and get you to correct things that I am happy to let slide some times, or I do things I don't /really/ want to do, in their eagerness to help/teach you.  This time the critique of my jar with lid left me feeling shite.  It wasn't bad, and its only my second jar with lid (first one also fell foul to my shite glazing skills).  I think on top of that, husband having a new exciting job, people around me talking about how they have picked up the guitar having not played for 10 years, and another girl being a fabulous potter, looking like Jennifer Aniston AND being a teacher as well, has left me feeling a bit pathetic.  I don't feel I have accomplished much apart from having children, who will (quite rightly) grow up and move on.  A bout of self pity, and the above people were not in anyway bragging or showing off, it was just information that occurred, but I do feel like a bit of a baby machine, with few real skills or accomplishments.  Problem is, I don't know, and never really known what I want to do. :-( :-( Ho hum.

Freedom!

The butterflies have been favouring the side of the 'pavillion' that faces the sun, and it seemed a shame in such lovely conditions to keep them inside so we decided yesterday, once Daddy came home from work, we would free the butterflies, so we did.  The other day, we were giving them some cut up oranges and 2 escaped but yesterday we let the others free - it was fabulous to see them flying off, some hung about a bit and had to be encouraged but now they are free.  And we might get some more, for only $5 its a great pet to have for a few weeks.

Yay! We have butterflies!!!

Everything was happening very quickly for a while but its been a WEEK since any action from our new pets.  But this morning, we have 5 butterflies - still 3 more to hatch.  I have to admit, I think I am the most excited about this (over husband buying new-to-him car and eldest son getting more new characters in Lego Wii Harry Potter).  So I have dipped some flowers in sugar water (tried a tissue but it disintegrated!) and one of them even FED off the flower. I am so proud.  This is the best pet ever!

Do I feel guilty?

No, not really.  Its not very Mother Earth of me but I have shipped the 2 older boys off to summer camp and my first instinct was to shop.  I am not much of a shopper, I hate shopping with other people, unless it involves lengthy stopping for coffee and bun, which isn't my Thing right now (off coffee atm), but my expanding waistline has made me itch for a bit of retail therapy.  Now. I have no money, I blew the budget in May on birthday presents and end of school presents - which were in excess, along with all the snacks and special class pot lucks that occurred, so I am still playing catchup - there is lots of ferreting about in the larder being creative with store cupboard staples!  So, I asked hubby if I could take some money from the savings, which have been a bit lean due to tax bills etc.  Anyhow he said yes, so I took myself off to a shopping maul and found myself in 3 different shops looking at maternity clothes.  It was one of those purely joyous occasions when lovely, stretchy waisted outfits were found, including a jumper for under 4 dollar (of course I made a point of highlighting this bargain to husband when displaying my purchases - an absolute must for the occasional shopper). To be fair I rarely shop like this and, as far as maternity wear is concerned it will be worn to death and out of shape, it rarely lasts from one pregnancy to the next due to the excessive wearingness and out of shapeness it become.

So, anyway, now I am reclining wearing Stretchy Waisted item number 1  - a lovely floaty skirt.  Its great. :-)

Day Seven

Caterpillar watch - Day six

Well the excitement of the week has been seeing how fat the caterpillars have grown and how quickly they have started to climb to the top of their pots.  But, pride comes before a fall and one of the pots got knocked off their 'safe' shelf but a boy who was climbing and now there is a jumble of caterpillars and caterpillar poo at the bottom of the pot. I hope they are ok..... The other pot looks On Schedule though, so there is still hope.

Update: I dont think one of the caterpillars has made it, the others seem to have just gotten back on the horse and have started to make their way up to the top of the pot.  This one is either sleeping, or dead :-(

Happy Solstice and Caterpillars

I don't celebrate these things but its always nice to remember -  I think they have a sort of happy feeling about them, I suppose, hope for the future, that sort of thing.

Anyhow, the children received a butterfly kit last week, including a voucher to send off for caterpillars.  The eldest was delighted as they have been doing this at school.  They were met with great excitement and the butterfly enclosure was swiftly furnished with food and home comforts, despite there being no actual caterpillars, butterflies or cocoons in there.  And after much batting about of the enclosure, it has found a home, a hook that has been in the ceiling since we arrived.    I am so glad to find a use for it! The caterpillars arrived on Saturday, 3 days ago and have been sitting in an appropriate place (warm, not too hot not too cold, sunny but not direct sun) and today I noticed they have started their journey up their little pots. Apparently they will climb up to the lid and hang in U shapes under the lid for a bit.  Very exciting.  :-)

Missing radio

I have listened to the radio since I was at my mothers knees in our old house in Bromley, I remember all the jingles and the songs, pick of the pops and Golden Hours.  Then as a teenager, I listened to Capital Radio, secretly in my room, to the late night show of Clare Rayburn, Anna and the Doc, Nicky Campbell, Chris Tarrant in the morning (less secret), then progressing to Radio One, eventually being compelled to Radio Two because I couldnt bear Chris Moyles (I didnt like his style of insulting and belittling).  Since University in Ireland I was a BIG fan of Gerry Ryan on RTE 2FM.  So I fully intended to use radio to help my acclimatise when I moved to foreign lands - after all, its the age of the internet isnt it, and I was always hearing Steve Wright read messages from people across the world. BUT a big happening was going to seriously shake my radio world, suddenly, unexpectedly, big Gerry Ryan died, just over a month before I was due to move.  He was my friend, my daily comfort, and, as a mum at home, often the source of varied information, he was an intelligent informed man, and even now I miss him and his craziness.  But still life goes on and I have the BBC Radio 2, with Chris Evans in the morning, Steve Wright in the afternoon, Simon Mayo, Jeremy Vine and Radcliffe and Maconie.  My poor mum has been through the same thing - her early morning indulgence and pleasure was listening to Sarah Kennedy, not my kind of thing but she loved it.  BUt at the end of last summer Lo! the Hallow Sarah did not return from her hols and mum was devastated.  Instead she has been left with Vanessa Felts, a shabby imitation and an in adequate, and annoying person to greet you first thing.  But the insults go further, over Christmas who popped up on 't radio as a stand in for one of my faves but PATRICK KEILTY - O M G the least funny, most annoying man that could ever appear over the air waves.  And as time goes on, he is given more and more 'specials' to cover.  I fear my time at BBC radio 2 is coming to an end,as it is I have to choose my listening with great care.  And on top of  that , Radcliffe and Maconie have been shifted to radio 6.   


But, disappointly as well, the technology is not as sophisticated as the ideas behind it - I am now on my second* internet radio, and there isn't a great choice, and they are not cheap, but they drive me mad, it takes a few moments to start up (a bit like a crystal radio warming up), and sometimes it stops for no reason (buffering), and when it does start the volume has reset itself so its so low you cant hear it anyway. If you want it to perform one of its other functions you have to crouch down and push the buttons, because you have to have super eye sight to easily see the screen instructions, and there are some buttons that do nothing anyway, so by the time you have found what you were looking for its time to go out anyway.  Whatever happened to just switching the radio on and getting on with life - not with an internet radio.  It looks pretty though.  Some of them offer the Listen again feature if the radio station has it, but unlike listening on a laptop, if there is a break in the connection, the radio programme starts at the very beginning , there is no way to scan through a programme and pick up where you left off. Also, sadly, if you have an ipod or ipad, you cant use the listen again feature, so really the best option is to listen thru your computer, which isn't always very mobile, and generally the sound is atrocious.  And these things are supposed to improve our lives???? It makes me mad because you pay the money and expect a finished product but very often that is not what you get.


* the first was the Pure Avanti Flow - a thing of beauty, sounded fantastic, performed like a dinosaur - lots of crouching to read the display and complicated button pressing routines to change station or function. It got sent back after the only feature that worked adequately - the ipod dock, then ceased to.  The second is the Sanyo R227, also good to look at but without the price tag of the Avanti Flow, so less of an insult, but an insult none the less.

9 Weeks

So it turns out I was more pregnant than I thought I was (quite pregnant, opposed to a bit pregnant...).  On the plus side this means that the first trimester will be over quicker and thus the tiredness and nausia.....  We'll see.

Soooo anyway, I have forced myself to do a bit of crochetting, for some reason the 'sickness' has put me off doing things like this at the moment.  Doing crafty things always make you feel better about yourself.  I managed to make a lil flower.  It took a day, with many rests in between, but I got their in the end. Yay me!  Now for a quick trip to Michaels to buy a brooch back to finish it off.  I love Michaels. :-)

No zumba

I seem to be surrounded by the Super fit here, although most the people I am friendly with are from the UK/Ireland, traditionally a sedantary race (forgive the generalisation), here we are in Calif and everyone turns out to be closet joggers.  I mean they do it for fun.  I did jog in my 20s when I was about 2 stone lighter but I didnt have children to fill my time and I did it mostly for that reason.  It felt good at the time but I have to say, I didnt really enjoy it, I craved it on the days I missed due to circumstances that prevented me from my runs( I went about 3 times a week) but now I dont do it, I dont crave it.  Anyhow, I have been talked into doing to Wharf to Wharf in July, and so far have done no training.  I looked at the Couch to 10k app (for the ipod) but it just scared me.  Then I find out yesterday that one girl (from Belfast) is running up to 7 miles in ONE GO - thats not like, a mile one day then a mile another day, for 7 days but 7 miles in one day!!!!!  Holy Moly.  Anyhoo, the way I am feeling these days means I am not even making zumba. :-( I am crippled with tired ness and sickness. I had to give away some flowers to a neighbour because the smell was making me sick. I cant eat the usual nonsense, have gone off coffee (which is a shame as *$ sent me a voucher for a free coffee for my birthday), and not even mad about tea, and considering I am a bit of a tea bag it speaks volumes.  All I want is lovely bread, or crossants, smeared thick with butter, and fizzy water.   And the reason for all this, well I think that should be clear now, child no.4.  No. 4!!!!!!  Are we crazy?!  Yes I think so.  But the impending 40s and the thought that no 3 might be the last really, kicked things into focus. And so, I am going thru the Miseries of the First Trimester.  Which is a time that traditionally you dont  tell folk THE CRACK, just in case things dont work out (fingers crossed) but I feel so awful, I feel I should give people a proper reason, rather than exaggerated tales of childrens late night shenanigans.  Plus, another 'issue' on the horizon is that people want to visit around about the time No.4 is due, and we don't yet know the Actual Date, but think that it would be madness for us and them to visit, we wouldbnt be great hosts.  But we havn't had many visitors as it so 'spensive to come over here, and its a cheap time for them.  Anyhow, not a biggy, it will work out.

Converse-tastic

Its been a Converse-tastic year so far and I just wanted to post some pics of my lovely shoes.  I havent bought new converse for about 5 years but they have got so holey now that I decided I had to.   I was incentivised by my sons new converse, bought as they cant be easily kicked off (and lost) whilst in a buggy.  But also, the States seems to bring about more Converse wearing in me than I would at home (out side the summer months - eg sandal weather) they are the mode de jour. Anyhow, at home it rains too much and I would probably have wet feet a lot if I wore them as much as here.  Incidently, so far this year, apart from a couple of freak days where the weather was in the 80s (late 20s) the weather is VERY similar to home, just without all the rain......

Anyhow, MY first 2 pairs of Converse came about by accident, I went in to buy one pair and had finally decided on the burgandy low tops, to replace the black low tops that had fallen off my feet (not converse actually but a Dunnes replica that cost only 4 pounds!!!!), but then I was seduced and finally persuaded when the woman in the shop told me if I bought a second pair I would get $10 off.  How could I resist!!  So I got a pair of  black hi tops :-)

That was about a month ago now, and guess what, for my birthday someone bought my a GREEN pair of high tops, just like son#3.  How fanfriggintastic is that!!!  Am totally Conversed up now for the next wee while.

Am going to do some hooking now, been off the boil with it of late.  Not feel the Very Best, but more about that later.....