Stitchy Fingers

Over the past week, I wasn't able to do much more than sit around and I started to feel guilty for not doing anything productive while my house was quickly turning to chaos around me. So I decided that maybe it was time to finally make Katie a stocking. If you've seen my stockings, you'll understand why I've been dragging me feet for over two years. They're really like little mini quilts. They have tiny applique pictures of toys, Christmas symbols, and religious scenes on them, not to mention their names. They take FOREVER. Here's a picture of Braden's if you can't picture it:



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I started with a Snowflake, which was pretty simple but required a lot of embroidery:



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After that, I made some little angels. The profile face was really tricky because of the smallness of it, and there were a lot of pieces on this one, but I learned a new method that makes multiple pieces less complicated than it used to be. Here's a picture, but it doesn't really do it justice. The shadows make some things look weird and some of the colors are off:



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This weekend, I did a little Rudolf. It was easy since the antlers are ultra-suede which I don't have to fold under as I stitch since it doesn't fray:
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Next I'll do a poinsettia. I'm also planning a cute little rag doll with yarn hair and dangling arms and legs, but I need two more ideas. After four stockings, I'm kinda running out. I've done a train, drum, candy cane, teddy bear, x-mas M&M guys, star, rocking horse, toy soldier, ornaments, tree, sleigh, present, wreath, fireplace W/stockings, angel, wise men, nativity scene, sailboat, bell, snowman, mittens, horn, Santa, & Mrs Claus. There are probably more, I just can't remember all of them. I'm thinking about maybe a wreath and couple of penguins, but a wreath could look cheesy if too simple, but if it's not simple enough it could be too hard. Penguins just seem boring. If you can think of anything fabulous, do tell!

One Thing After The Other

Well, I'm happy to report that we are free from the lice invasion. Yay! I haven't found a nit in over a week, so hopefully we won't see this again for a very long time. I'd like to say we're free forever, but I'm not stupid enough to jinx myself. Now I have to start unloading all the garbage bags. I had put them on the balcony off of the master bedroom and I'm starting to wonder how much we really need that stuff. I kind of enjoyed the small amount of extra space I had in my closets. I think I can definitely get rid of some stuffed animals without the kids noticing. They didn't even miss them. Hmmm, I think I've just stumbled onto the perfect solution for simplifying. As soon as I'm mobile again, I'm going to go through the kid's toys and put half of them away for two weeks. If they don't ask about any of it, it's gone.

I just realized most of you are probably wondering why I'm not mobile. No I didn't break my legs, I'm sorry I haven't kept my blog up to date. It's kind of weird, really. I've had this horrible annoying cough for about 3 weeks or so. You know how when you get those you're stomach muscles get incredibly sore? Well strangely, for me this time it was my ribcage. My brother-in-law (he's a PA) thinks maybe some of my ribs separated from my sternum. That is so much more painful than sore tummy muscles, let me tell you. Anyway, Friday night I had a coughing fit and was bent over trying to minimize the rib pain, when I felt this little 'pop' in my side. I didn't even have time to wonder what it was before I was overwhelmed with white-hot, dizzying pain. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't move, Jared couldn't figure out what to do with me. It was 11:30 at night, so I couldn't go to a doctor and I wasn't about to go to the emergency room when I knew what was wrong with me, just as I knew there was nothing they could do about it but give me drugs. So I took 4 Ibuprofen and went to bed sitting up that night. I'll bet you've never heard of someone breaking a rib from coughing, but apparently it happens often enough for my bro-in-law to not even be surprised.

So that's what happened and life goes on. I got to stay in bed most of Saturday while my kids ran wild. I only left the house once to get pick up some prescriptions from the pharmacy. I decided then that driving was to be avoided if at all possible. We had our primary program yesterday, so I still had to go participate in that, smiling and singing along with the kids as if I didn't have a knife in my side. They were so cute though, and I had my friend Codeine to help me out. Anything stronger would have had me sleeping or loopy. Codeine isn't fabulous for pain, but it sure helps with the cough and if you ask me, that's good enough. It doesn't hurt too much as long as I just sit still - no bending, reaching, twisting, or lifting, so dang, I guess I'll just have to be lazy for a while. I wonder how many books I can read before the house falls apart?

Nit-Picking

Okay, so I know I'm really horrible at this blogging thing. I don't know how some of you people find the time to write these wonderful witty blogs every other day. I guess I'm just not that interesting. But I have something to tell you about today. Oh boy, do I.

Do you remember back in third or fourth grade, when you used to laugh at the smelly kid because the nurse sent him home for having lice? NOT FUNNY. 2 weeks ago at church, we were doing our program practice in the chapel and one little boy announces into the microphone that he doesn't know his part because they missed church for two weeks because his sisters had lice. All the adults (myself included) snickered and felt really sorry for his mom for having that embarrassing little fact trumpeted through the chapel and foyers. What didn't occur to me at the time was that his little sister was in the nursery with my little Katie. I guess I assumed that since they were there in church, the problem must have been taken care of. I'm sure they thought it was.

On Friday, I noticed a little bug in Katie's hair. I picked it out and thought nothing of it. Saturday, I saw another bug that looked just like the one I picked out the day before. I thought, hmmm that's weird. I called my mom and she said she never had to deal with lice so she didn't know what they looked like, but she remembered my sister saying they were small, kinda long, and white. I thought Whew, Katie's bug was brown. It must have been something else. Forgotten.

This morning, I was in Wal-mart and I see another one. At this point I realize that either mom was wrong or Katie had some other infestation. So I went home and did some internet research (why I didn't do this on Saturday, I don't know). Sure enough. My baby girl has head lice. So I'm reading all this info and I realize - hey, you know my scalp has been a bit itchy lately. I had thought it was my general dry skin + desert climate = itchy everything complaint - I had even picked up some Head and Shoulders just hours before. I immediately head to the bathroom and attempt to see if I have bugs in my hair. I can't see anything. So I went to the drug store to buy the magic shampoo and special combs so I can take care of Katie and when I get home I pull one of the combs through my hair and, yup, they're on me too. Ew Ew Ew.

Oh, how I regret ever laughing at the poor smelly kid. Lice does not only pick the smelly kids, I can assure you. I consider us pretty clean people. What really stinks about this stuff (besides the medicine we have to wash our hair with) is the nightmare of lice-proofing the house. I have to take all the pillows and bedding and seal them in plastic bags for a few weeks. Then I have to wash in hot water all of the entire family's clothing (dirty and clean), also the blankets, towels, basically anything I can fit in the washing machine. Anything that can't be washed in hot water has to be bagged like the pillows. Then I get to vacuum all the floors and furniture, followed by a good hosing with lice killing spray. The hard thing is to keep all the cleaned stuff away from the possibly tainted stuff to avoid re-contamination. My apt isn't big enough to have all my laundry in one quarantined, not disturb-able place. I feel like this is going to take all week, and then what if the shampoo stuff doesn't kill them all and I have to start all over? Kill me now.