a gypsy caravan

hello, i'm rebecca and i'm a compulsive labeler...(hi rebecca!)

I am often teased by some of my family members about my desire to label things around my home. I am easily distracted and labeling things keeps me focused on putting them in their correct places.  

Do you remember these DYMO labelmakers? My mother and father had one in the 1970's and used it to label jars of small parts in our garage, storage areas in our sailboat and three ringed binders of income tax returns.  I once borrowed it from my mother and labeled everything in my room with the plastic, black, typewritten tape. "Becky's dresser", "Becky's bed", "Becky's Mrs. Beasley Doll"...you get the picture.  My mother commented that since I was an only child, there was little need to label every item in my room as no one else was interested in using my things. But, label I did. 

Of course, that's a stock photo.  My Mrs. Beasley doll got handed down to a neighbor child.  Now they are selling on eBay for upwards of $200! 

DYMO has come a long way since those plastic typewriter labels. They, and several other companies, now make some nifty tape machines with lovely fonts and full keyboards to label and organize just about everything in your life.  I recently purchased one of those machines to better organize our storage items.  I have been going through, purging and labeling all of the Rubbermaid storage containers so I know what is inside at a glance. 

Today I packed away some last remaining Christmas items.  When I reached for my labelmaker, this is what I found...

Yes, someone labeled my labelmaker--LABELMAKER. (Say that ten times fast!) The people in my family sure are a hoot.  Ahem.

(That is baby Mae's tiny, chubby hand.) 

Speaking of labels, Staples is carrying a lovely, affordable line of Martha Stewart home organizing products this winter. Not only are the binders and organizers very nice but the dry erase and chalkboard labels are wonderful. I bought the chalkboard labels for some of the kitchen storage. I think they came a half dozen in a package for $4 or so. 

I am going to go take a hot bath and work on my knitting before bed. I hope you are having a relaxing evening with your family!

Love, Rebecca

winter knitting

I love to knit in January and February. The pressure to complete a project before Christmas has passed and the weather allows me to sit down on the sofa for a bit each day. Usually, a couple of little people snuggle up next to me or on my lap while I knit which makes the knitting a little more difficult but a much toastier experience. 

I have been reading Kate's blog for some time.  She has a whole slew of fabulous and affordable patterns.  I recently purchased both Owls and Owlet. I think the button eyes on the owls are so cute!  I've not yet started the adult version but have the children's Owlet on the needles for little Tess.   I allowed her to choose her yarn colorway from Knitpicks. She pointed her chubby little dimpled finger at the screen and chose Damson Plum which really looks more like the Blackberry colorway in real life. It is much deeper than the appearance of the photo on Knitpicks' site. I love the Swish Bulky because it is a superwash Merino--one of the softest I've felt.  It knits up so nicely and feels great in my hands. I haven't gotten to the owl cable on the sweater yet, a couple of inches to go before I begin that part.  I have never done any cable work before but am looking forward to creating those sweet little owls!

I read quite a few good reviews about the Harmony Wood interchangeable circular needles before I purchased a set for myself.  They're smooth and beautifully crafted.  There isn't a rough spot to be found and the connections to the cables is almost seamless.  Knitting with them has been a pleasure. Plus they are just so darn pretty!

I also recently bought Georgie Hallam's Milo vest pattern. I am making one both for Annie and Tess. I bought Plymouth DK Superwash Merino for Tess'.  There is no color name on the label but rather a number.  The shade reminds me of a spring strawberry so that is what I'm naming it--Spring Strawberry. 

(Nevermind the wrinkled tablecloth, ok?)

The Milo vest has a small strip of cable down the front of the vest.  There are several cable pattern options included but I'm not sure which to use as of yet. I want to try my hand at making a tiny vest for Tess before attempting Annie's in the larger size.  I'm kind of excited to be knitting two patterns with cable.  It's a new frontier for me. :)

{Side note: little Tess' real name is Teresa Mae.  I usually call her Mae. So if I slip and call her that, don't think we had another child and you missed the announcement. :) My maternal great grandmother's name was Anna Mae, which is why Tess has that middle name.  Anna Mae insisted on being called Annabelle, even by her children and grandchildren. Apparently, she also dyed her hair black until she was in her eighties.  I do not know much more about her, except that she had a farm, lived in the country and liked to crochet.  In fact, she was the one who crafted The Pink Pillow that was eventually handed down to her daughter, my grandma, and then eventually ended up in my home.}

My Mary is growing to be a young lady and is almost out of children's sized clothing.  I am looking forward to that transition because the older girls' department is much more difficult to shop than the ladies' section.  I intended to make a Milo vest for her as well but the pattern is only up to a size 6.  If any of you know of a similar ladies' sized pattern, please let me know. 

I hope you are all well and staying warm.

Love, Rebecca

holgate toys

I was at a loss as to what to buy for little Tess last Christmas. I wanted to buy her a few, excellent quality toys that would stand the test of time so I searched for some nice gifts online.  I had never heard of Holgate Toys until that day but they have fast become one of my favorite companies.  I purchased the colored wooden stacking rings  and Classic Bingo Bed (wooden hammer and peg toy). Both arrived promptly, are well packaged and of wonderful quality.  They are sanded smooth and painted attractively. The best part is that they are made here in the United States! Even my bigger children took a turn hammering the colorful wooden "nails" just for fun. 

There aren't any paid sponsors on this little blog, but I do like to tell people about quality products and services when I run across them. You might want to check out Holgate Toys if you are looking for well made, American toys. Tess has played with the ring stacker several times a day since Christmas.  I think that's the best "consumer satisfaction". :)

 

swift and ball winder

It has been almost 16 years since I learned to knit.  My firstborn son was just a couple of weeks old when a package arrived for him via UPS.  The UPS driver was always friendly and asked me whether I knew the lady, Chris, on the next street who had also recently had a baby.  I said that I hadn't met her yet.  Within a few days, we exchanged phone numbers via the UPS driver and became friends.  I spent many hours over her house when Ben was a baby.  We sat and nursed our babies and drank tea. She liked to spin and knit.  I liked to watch her. Chris soon asked whether I'd like to learn to knit.  I was so happy to learn and made my first project under her direction--a navy blue merino wool pilot cap for my new baby boy.  

One of my favorite things to do while visiting her was to watch her turn the skeins or hanks of yarn into balls using her yarn swift.  There was something so very Mary Poppins-ish about that umbrella-like yarn swift. I was mesmerized and always wanted to purchase one for myself.  This Christmas, sixteen years later, I did just that.  

My yarn swift arrived the other day. I am really pleased with the quality. I was concerned it might be poorly made since it was much less expensive than other swifts I've priced.  Quite the opposite.  It is sturdy, well-made and pleasant to look at. I ordered it from Knitpicks. We've had such fun using it!

I also purchased the yarn baller from the same company.  It works wonderfully and is highly addictive to use. Everyone in the family has tried their hand at winding the yarn into balls.  

The simple, useful, old fashioned things always bring my family so much happiness. Now that all of my yarn is ready to knit, I need to get going on my knitting projects! I have a little something in the works for baby Tess. More on that later. 

I hope you all are staying warm and enjoying the winter months with your families. Love, Rebecca

promises to keep

Yesterday, we hiked through the woods to our neighbor's Christmas tree farm. It was the first day that we've had any significant snowfall this season.  This time last year, we had a couple of feet of snow. After deciding on a tree, the kids carried it back home. I wore the baby in the cloth sling and had her bundled up toasty in lots of mismatching woolens since she had the flu.  We put on the lights and, last night, the ornaments. Now the living room has a nice soft glow to it that I just love. I could keep a Christmas tree up all year, just to see the pretty lights.  

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

is it ok to write a post about grief this close to christmas?

If not, I really am sorry. Just click away.  I would understand completely. 

My mom fell ill a few days after Halloween.  November was a blur caring for her here at home for a week, two weeks in the hospital and then her death and funeral. In fact, I still have fall decorations on the porch and in the living room.  We have pumpkins instead of Christmas right now. I am trying to transition seasons between trips back and forth to clean out her apartment.  Thus far, there are no Christmas cookies baked, not a present bought nor an ornament hung.  It will be a very different sort of Christmas. I did manage to put up the advent log two and a half weeks late but we have forgotten to light the candles and do the devotions except for one day. We are hoping to get a Christmas tree this weekend. The house, until yesterday, was still filled with large flower arrangements left over from the service.  Many were wilting and so I threw them all away. I just couldn't bear to look at them anymore.  

I don't mean to be depressing.  I've read over and over how our blogs are supposed to bless others.  I will fall short today and I'm so sorry.  I take consolation that Jesus himself wept at the death of his dear friend Lazarus even though He knew He was about to raise him from the dead.

I have had very little time to grieve. I went straight from the hospital to the funeral home, spent the days after buying cemetery plots, clothing for the children to wear, planning the funeral, filing paperwork and trying to continue to breathe in and out.  Within a day of the funeral, we were cleaning out mom's apartment and have been working on it nonstop ever since. I have no siblings and my father died ten years ago. So that leaves me and my immediate family to do the packing and sorting and moving. I have hit a wall and can't bear to go any longer, can't figure out how to organize that which is still there.  I would like to pay someone to box up the rest and be done with it. Then there is estate work, thank you notes and all the rest. Completely exhausting to me to think about.  

I want to sit in my home (a clean home, not the one that has been through a whirlwind of sadness and rushing about for the last few weeks) and knit.  I want to drink tea and read Christmas books with my children next to a decorated tree, listening to Christmas carols.  I want to spend my days thinking about what kind of cookie to make and which picture book to read aloud next.  But that is not my lot this year. Do I sound like I am feeling sorry for myself? I probably am. It is what it is. 

I miss my mother. This time last year we were baking dozens and dozens of cookies: apricot and prune kolachy, cinnamon sugared pecans and gingersnaps. The world continues to rotate and I want to ask everyone, "How can you go about your business as usual when my mother just died? Why isn't everyone stopping to pause and remember this lovely woman? Where is the moment of silence, the holiday off work where everyone hugs their family a little tighter?"

I know mothers die every day. But she sure was a very special mother.  

sweet and precious six year old

Little Annie turned six years old the other day.  She wanted a strawberry cake with white icing, blue sprinkles and purple butterflies. She asked for mint chocolate chip ice cream.   She also wanted to go bowling as a family.  Those were simple requests from a gentle spirited, kind and loving little girl.  

We are so happy you are in our lives, Anne Marie.  We love you very much. 

grateful for

• a rainy night to hide our tears.
• a husband who spent many hours producing a beautiful photographic slideshow and photo boards to put on display at the funeral home.
• sons who shook hands with many people they didn't know without having to be prodded, bribed or threatened.
• flowers...beautiful fragrant flowers.
• children who wrote love letters to their grandmother and placed them in her coffin.
• a dear friend who, without being asked, brought coloring books, card games, animal crackers and juice boxes to the funeral home...and then played with my little girls after the wake got to be too much for them.
• my daughter's godmother who prepared a delicious meal for us to eat during the break in between the viewing hours.
• cousins whom I haven't seen in years who came to show their support and love.
• a baby who wanted to kiss her grandma over and over again before they closed the coffin, giving all of us a much needed excuse to let our tears flow freely.
• the love of far away friends who literally prayed me through the day.
• a handwritten note found among my mother's belongings that simply reads "In the arms of our Father, at peace with the Angels".

In Loving Memory

I have tried so many times to find the right words that will do justice to memorialize my mother.  But all will fall so very short and ring empty when compared with the flood of emotions in my heart.  My dear mother, Beverly, passed away yesterday at the age of 73 from complications of pneumonia.  I am still in shock and am reeling with sadness over the huge loss that we have experienced.  My mother has been the most devoted, trustworthy friend, confidant and companion to me since I was born.  She has devoted her entire life to loving me, her only child, and my family. She has always been there.  And now she is gone.  The void is tremendous and I am crushed, as are my children.  But out of the aching sadness comes the whisperings of joy that she is now at peace.  We take refuge in the promises of Christ which tell us that Mom is now surrounded by those she loved who passed before her. 

May her soul and all the souls of the faithfully departed, rest in peace.

Safe home Mom. Oh, how we love you. 

mudpies and catching up

Summer has come and gone. I have written and rewritten posts summarizing our last few months but they all sound pale and faint compared to the real thing.  Our summer was like most of our summers--equal doses of fun and relaxation. My favorite day this summer was mudpie day.  Annie made mudpies while Chris and Mary swam in the river.  Tess stayed on the shore and skipped rocks with me.  We did so many other things but this day stands out as a magical, lovely moment that I will remember when I am old and grey.  (Well, older and greyer than I already am. :) ) And rather than continue to try to describe it in words, I will just post the photos. 

Other highlights:

• trips to the zoo
• the county fair
• knitting on the porch
• lots and lots of drawing and painting
• watching and feeding the birds
• raising 8 baby rabbits and selling them the week of fair
• family photo walks and posting on Instagram
• days at the beach swimming and searching for beachglass
• baseball and soccer
• garage sales and lemonade stands

Our summer was rich and memorable. We recently planted mums near the front door and put out scarecrows and pumpkins. Fall is in the air and I am happy because it is my favorite season of the year.  I love it when the air is cool and crisp and the heavy humidity is gone.  It's nice to be able to wear a sweater with a pair of jeans and be comfortable.  

I hope all of you had enjoyable summers.  I hadn't checked google reader for a couple of months and when I returned, there were 534 posts to read.  I'm embarassed to say that I marked them "all read" rather than try to catch up.  I hope to be better at keeping up with reading blog posts. Happy Fall! :)

Love, Rebecca 

update on kim

I have been meaning to update you on Kim's condition.  She is still hospitalized and has a long road ahead. She has a cyst that is enveloping the pancreas which has caused permanent damage to the organ.  I am praying that damage will be miraculously healed.  She has not eaten since entering the hospital ten days ago as the bowel needs total rest when dealing with this type of infection.  She is receiving nurtrients and fluids through IV and will be attempting liquids and soft foods in the upcoming days.  She is still in quite a bit of pain as pancreatic pain is known to be some of the worst. All that being said, Kim is doing much better today than she was a couple of days ago. I know she appreciates your prayers so much. 

Thanks to those of you who have commented and written with your love, support and prayers.  xoxoxo Rebecca

prayers, candles and soup

I can count my close friends on one hand, the people I can rely on, who pray for me and who I can pick up with even after not speaking during a busy time.  All of them live within an hour of me except for my dear friend Kim. Kim lives across the sea.  We have been friends for several years now, meeting online and later in person. We email daily and speak on the phone often.  She knows my ins and outs.  I trust her and love her dearly. 

Kim is very sick right now, in the hospital with a very bad infection of the pancreas.  She has been moved from the ICU to a regular room but is not out of the woods.  And she is still in a lot of pain.  I've been offering prayers for her throughout these days.  I've lit about a dozen candles in my home so everywhere I am reminded to pray. 

I feel sort of helpless because I can't do anything more tangible due to our distance apart.  My motherly instincts tell me to make soup and bread and deliver it to the family, to help keep her littles happy and content, to help with her housework and cooking. The day I heard Kim was in the hospital, I made a pot of soup though I knew I could not deliver it. Today I am making another.  Silly I know. But as I chop, season and stir I am thinking of, her, praying for her and wishing she were here.

Will you say a prayer for my friend? I would so appreciate it.  And I know she would as well. 

Mary's First Holy Communion

lately

Last Christmas, our local Best Buy was running a one day sale for a free iPhone. I guess because the iPhone 4 came out, they were giving away the 3GS for free.  Because I qualified for an upgrade, I went ahead and stopped in for mine.  

I really never expected that I would love that phone quite as much as I do.  Aside from the organizational genius that it is, the camera on the phone is far better than the one I have been using for the past few years. I've been using quite a few photo and editing apps.  

Subsequently, I've gotten hooked on Instagram, which is sort of like a pictoral facebook, without the annoying high school drama that sometimes takes place.  All photos loaded onto Instagram must be uploaded from a mobile device.  So, technically, they are supposed to be taken with an iPhone but many folks take them with a DSLR and then sync the photos from their computer to their phone to post on Instragram. As I am getting older, I am finding myself talking a lot less but still appreciating the connection with other people.  There are some really talented people posting some beautiful photos on IG.  

Anyhow, I have posted several series of photos that I thought maybe I'd share here for those of you who are interested.  I have always envied people who can take beautiful portraits or lovely landscapes.  I have never been very good at the "big picture" but seem to be able to pick out textures, colors, shadows and patterns in things.  So that is what I find fun and interesting these days.

As many of you know, we moved out a bit farther into the country last spring which makes for quite a bit of rural photo fodder. So here are some up close and personal tractor photos, for those of you who might enjoy them. I get a little hyper-focused with the subjects sometimes.

Well, that's it from me this evening. I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend with your families!

knitting lessons

Mary Kathryn has been knitting for several months.  She is working on a scarf made from a gorgeous Noro yarn as well as several washcloths that she is making for my mother as a gift.  Annie had been watching us knit indifferently until the other day when she emphatically announced that she was going to learn to knit that very moment. So I pulled out several balls of cotton yarn and let her pick out a color.  She chose a bright pink and set to work on her first washcloth.  I was quite amazed at how quickly she picked up the rhythm.  Only a few months ago I had tried to teach her to finger knit and she could not get the simple chain stitch so I was surprised that working with the needles came so easily to her. 

Tess happened to take an extra long nap that warm afternoon so Annie and I sat in the screen porch and knit together for some time.  She sat on my lap and the sun shone warm on our faces.  The birds were singing and flitting in and out of the rhododendrons that surround the porch.  Everything felt right with the world.  Ever have an afternoon like that? They aren't all that common but this one was so lovely. I hope she remembers.  It is one of those days that will be etched in my memory for a long time.