I'm baaaaackkkkkkk

E-gads......has it really been two months since I last posted? My life has been thrown into shambles and for those of you who know me well, you'll recognize my absence as the typical "Rebecca has shut down" mode. I hate that I do that, but it's always been the case. I tend to only focus on the tasks at hand and put blinders on to everything else. In a nutshell, here's what's been happening:

• our house is on the market and we're relocating to New Jersey....the state that everyone says, "But there's nice parts in Jersey", which makes me believe that most of it is crap. Blake has been driving back and forth each day, which is a 2+ hour commute, so we don't really have a choice.


• Nina is getting ready for her first solo skating performance right before Christmas, which she's thrilled about. What that means for ME is that we're at the rink 2-3 times a week, with Asher in tow running around like a maniac.


• Asher is almost 22 months. Enough said on that. He's hell on wheels. He had eye surgery last month to open up a clogged tear duct. His right eye watered constantly, and he needed to have the duct opened before he was two. It was a minor operation, and he recovered really quickly. The freakiest part was that he cried bloody tears for 18 hours, so we took to calling him "our own personal Jesus".


• My business has been fantastic this Holiday season, and if I could figure out a way not to sleep, then I might actually catch up with everything.


• Blake and I are going away ALONE this weekend for the first time in two years. Of course, we're house hunting, but we're hoping to get a nice dinner in and maybe a movie. I also made sure to book a bed and breakfast that does not accept children. Nothing kills a weekend away alone better than someone else's kids. I'm doing everything I can to go into New York on Friday afternoon to get some fabric and notions shopping in, but it seems that despite my best efforts, that might not happen. Blake is an excellent shopper, as long as there's something for him, so fabric/notions shopping is not that thrilling. Most of all, I'm looking forward to having 3-4 hours all to myself, when I don't have to rush to be back home, or have someone whining because I'm taking too long. What I'd really like for the Holidays is a whole weekend in New York by myself, which I know is selfish, but that's what I'd really, really like.

My laptop crashed this weekend. Totally and completely crashed. Without any hope of retrieval. I am in severe, severe mourning over this because, like an idiot, I did not back anything up. Oh - it's on my ever-growing "to do" list, but I just haven't gotten to it. I still have the big computer in my studio, which I'm on now, but it's all different and I don't like it - like going to your in-laws for the first time at Thanksgiving. It's alright, just not where you're comfortable. The keys are harder to press, so I can't type as fast, and I get distracted by all my projects that are due for customers and I just don't feel like working to finish. I procrastinate a lot this time of year because there are a ton of things I'd like to get done for myself, and as much as I vow that I'm not going to be making presents this year, I always have a healthy stack of gifts to make. The worst part is that very few people appreciate the time I take to do this, so this year, only the "craft worthy" are getting things. That cuts the list down significantly to the moms (Blake's and mine), my kids, and Blake might finally get that hat he's been asking me to knit him for the past three years.



I did just win a $50 gift certificate at the local yarn store, so I hired a babysitter and spent a glorious hour picking out yarn to make something for myself. In the 7 years that I've been knitting, I've only made one thing for myself. It's this gorgeous sweater that I just finished, and it took me eight months to accomplish. I love it. At my last craft show, as few weeks ago, someone offered me $250 for it, and I did contemplate selling it, but the shirt I had on underneath was not well........well, it was too clingy and see-through to be worn alone. And I love my sweater. This time, I picked out some beautiful silk/alpaca yarn that's just heaven to work with. I'm itching to get started on it, but it will probably have to wait until we're in Vermont after Christmas.



I will post some pictures the next time because I need to figure out how to plug my camera into this computer. Is everyone done with their Holiday shopping?