Spoons

So I'm thinking about how good I've been feeling, how easy it will be to lose some weight and feel even better, how lucky I am to have healthy children, how JAC and I are reasonably healthy and vital and how easy it is for us to decide to go on a vacation or clean the siding on the house or...

And then I found this. And it smacked me right in the face. This is what my brother has. He has RA right now, but has tested + for Lupus. So he wakes up, and I'm guessing a lot of days he doesn't even know how many spoons he will have. Some days might get better as they go on, some won't. And Annie has Sjorgren's, as does my Dad. They might know how many spoons they have, but not how fast they'll get taken away during the day.

Please - I don't even want to think about whether this is going to hit me, or my kids, or anyone else. Ever. This is the hardest part about making parental decisions. Knowing that the repercussions are permanent, that they will forever affect their lives. And that if I had done one thing differently, it might not ever have happened.

Another week!

Another week has come and gone...amazing! The dog walking thing (on a leash) is becoming more normal, but it still sucks. It makes me feel I'm breaking my intuitive balance with the pet world. :( But he's behaving on the leash much better, I gotta say, and no issues with anyone around the 'hood.

BBQ is ripping, and it is time for me to go make food. more later...

Wow - how did 2 weeks go by without a post from me?! Amazing.

Well, things here have been pretty busy - last weekend was the Brownie overnight at Camp Is-sho-da, which was really fun! It rained a lot on Sat., and was pretty ugly out there, wet and muddy. The girls went on a 1 hr. adventure to find marshmallow sticks, but otherwise we did indoor games and activities. We painted our nails, played games, and finally got ready for dinner. The circle games were a hoot - assassin, telephone etc. They really brought back memories for me of camp and scouts and fun times. some fun pics of the gals:



Having just arrived, in the rain, the girls did lots of activities together. For some, they had just met, and the got along famously!



That evening we had LOTS of songs and stories. Mary shared LOADS with us - what a wonderful camper mom!



MARSHMALLOWS!!!



Beca in her new kerchif - curtesy of troop 554!



The girls all helped out a ton - here they are happily washing dishes (truly!).

The girls went for a nice long hike in the morning. Here they are down by the lake.



We decided to build an inuksuk to leave behind for future campers at the cabin. An inuksuk is a small shrine made from rocks. It is meant to look like a little person. Our body rock was pretty fat- our person has a little weight loss challenge ahead of them! But there are two little round feet, a body (that is generally flat) and then a round stop on top. The gap between the body and the ground, made by the feet, is a perfect little spot to squirrel away messages. It is a traditional landmark made by people in the far north (arctic circle) and it translates as "something that acts as a human", meaning something (a landmark) that offers humans both direction and messages. Here's a BIG one from Rankin Inlet in Nunavut



and here's ours that the girls made:



Maybe not so impressive, but the girls did carry the rocks a mile or so, which were heavy and it was hard work for them. For a bunch of kids, they did a great job!

Newly finished bag for Beca

So I decided that if my little girl is going off into the big world without me, which I suppose is inevitable, but does it have to happen NOW?, that she's not going without a LOT of me with her. So I knitted up the spiral bag from One Skein, in a delicious fuzzy purple that Jackie gave me for my b'day. All it needs now is a pull string. :D



The bag will go to camp with her, filled with all kinds of little things to give her comfort and remind her of us at home who love her to BITS!

I will take pictures of my stash soon - I have one more little lot of yarn coming from 100% Pure Wool, and that's the last of my buying spree for a while. I do love this habit! Now to re-start on JAC's tie in the electric-peacock-blue Bamboo that I love so much! Ori pulled out about half, and I decided the other half must go. 11" reworked is nuttin since it's so wonderful to knit! It's a tiny little yarn, but I am really appreciating the drape. It think he'll look smashing in it at his i'view in VICTORIA (ok, no interview yet, but someday there will be, and he WILL look smashing!).

What I want to be when I grow up.

We were gifted this cool set of 'table talk' cards, questions that everyone can answer at their own level. One question was "what would you want to be famous for", another was "what would you like to be when you grow up". Jerry wants to be remembered (famous) for saving someone (like drowning, fire, etc), which is very noble, my man. I said I wanted to be famous for my writing and to learn languages (what you would go back to school to learn). Beca wants to grow up and be a poet. And live in Dallas. And the three things she would fix in the world? Everyone has to recycle, no one gets to be bad to kids, and money is free.

A Fat Rant

Just putting this up here - it's a youtube called A Fat Rant that is SO wonderful! I think it just puts into perspective the fact that a LOT of people can carry weight and not become unhealthy by it, but ok, some shouldn't. Some people are susceptible to things that being overweight can exacerbate, for sure. The world is just NOT made for fat people - or tall people, either. Another rant. Anyway, not stopping by for a long chat about this, but know that this vid made me smile, made me think, and made me feel ... happy. :D

Playing with the big boys.

Today Beca had a softball game at the town park, and we looked at the big tent set up to cover the atendees for tomorrow's memorial service for the State Trooper who was killed last month in the search for a serial killer. BIG tent. We saw BIG machines doing work along Route 85, too, which was fascinating to O, and me too! Very cool to watch those big tractors at work! And as we watched and cheered on the girls, who played a great game in the drizzle, Ori played with the big boys! Really, this is the first time he's joined in, and I gotta say, they were incredible. 2 4yo's, on e6 yo, and Ori. He ran his little butt off, enjoyed chasing balls, and played rough and tumble with the best of them. All the little brothers, goofing off in the wet grass. I was really very happy for him, he was in his ELEMENT! OF course, getting out of there was less fun. I had to let Jerry strap him into the carseat, he was SO unhappy about departure. We hung with Deb, who had her toes all for show, as she and Chris are off to Cancun for the weekend! Have a great time, guys! And the Beasleys were there, too. Lots of nice things to say about being part of a community of people who are so into their kids! Speaking of which, I was at the Farm Food Network meeting last night, which was looong, but very interesting. Mary Alice was there - great to catch up with her, and THANKS Mary Alice for the ride home! So she and a friend are buying Java Jazz!!! They are going to give Delmar a really healthy alternative! I mentioned that Delmar Luncheonette does have some healthy choices on their menu, but that they have a very stolid menu, and most of it isn't very healthy. Buffalo burgers, pita platter, and maybe the salads, but most of the salads are drenched, so for me, not so healthy. Feeling much better about being here, with such improvements, I'll tell ya! The meeting also had me really rethink my own 'role' in things here. Maybe time to get more Active - time for me to play with the big boys, too?