Playdate

The Amazing Adventures of Robot Cat

Okay, maybe he's not a super hero...in like, the Batman/Superman sort of way. 

He's not even known.  He is simply an idea that has come to be. 

A while back, I had made a stuffed bird for my 4yo son and naturally my 6yo wanted me to make something for him.  Not a bird, or a dog or any of his favorite anmals.  Out of ideas, I suggested he draw a picture of what he would like for me to make.  So here's his sketch...

 

With fabric from my husband's worn out dress shirt, leftover yarn and a bit of polyfil I set out on my mission.  And after a few months of production delay, I presented Robot Cat. 

BTW, he is neither a robot or a cat but we're gonna roll with this.  Who knows what kinds of adventures he will encounter!

Could it be?

Is it really the end of August?

How did the summer slip away so quickly?  Well, I hope everyone has stayed busy and cool in between the relaxing, lazy moments. 

Looking back, I guess we've been busy.  We did a little home improvement by having the house painted and an entry portico installed.  Not quite how I designed the arc but it's still nice...and most importantly, it keep the rain off our heads.

  

I'm still in search of the right lantern.  There are a LOT of ugly light fixtures out there!

We took a trip up north.  First, to the AMAZING Children's Museum in Boston, MA.  We loved this place!  So well organized and all the interactive displays and rooms were VERY well designed.  Check out the main atrium and the incredible 3-story bent wood climbing sculpture!

Then, we visited family in Phippsburg, Maine.  We spent a few quiet days taking in the scenery, having lobster and exploring nearby attractions.  The boys really enjoyed the Maine Maritime Museum and the boat ride on the Kennebec.  I really enjoyed my lobster dinner.

Last but NOT least, we visited college friends who live in Rhode Island.  They recently welcomed their second child and we were so glad to meet him.  We had a great time with them.  On one of the days, we went to the beach at Newport and the shore was covered with red seaweed (or jellyfish)!  Here's Rob spearheading an ambitious sand castle project.  It turned out great and it kept the kids busy!

  

In addition to swim lessons, summer camp, family visits and BBQ's, I guess our puppy has kept us busy.  Look how big he's gotten.  Sniff is a really good dog and silly when he sleeps on his back...

One thing I didn't get to do this summer is garden.  Since the painters had to work near the garden beds, I had to take a year off from growing veggies.  I miss it.  Look how sad the empty garden is.

Next year, I'll do DOUBLE! 

Okay, maybe not.  But I will move forward with gusto!

Next week the doors open at the local schools.  Can it really be the end of summer? 

Quick Vest

Friends of ours in Rhode Island recently welcomed their second baby.  We are so happy for them!

I made this vest as soon as we got the good news.  It's a pretty easy pattern from "natural knits for Babies and Moms" with just knit and purl rows.  I used Sublime baby cashmere merino silk yarn.  It's so super soft and easy to work with.

 

I love picking out the buttons to personalize the piece.

 

I hope it keeps him warm this Fall!

In bloom

 

Park Avenue

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Central Park Reservior

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Bringing the outdoors in.

Spring is in full bloom!

Tweet, tweet

I loved Kris's post about birds when she wrote it but now I love it more because there is a new bird lover among us.  My four year old has been learning about birds and their characteristics in preschool.  Who knew?!

To foster this new appreciation, I've been getting books from the library so that we can both learn about these beautiful creatures.  (Is it sad that my son knows more about birds than me?  I guess I led an unobservant life as a child...or there were no birds on Staten Island beside pigeons.)  Anyway, LOVE the library!

Today is his last day of Spring Break.  I decided to use some fabric I had around the house to make his very own bird.  This is my interpretation of a female bluebird. 

 

Owen picked out the buttons for the eyes; one black and one red.  He tells me he wants to take it to school which tells me that he likes it.  Yay!

Fever!

As I write this entry, there is a wintery mix of freezing rain pouring out of the dark sky.  We have another month before the official end of winter.  This and the brown landscape is bringing me to tears.  I've got a bad case of Spring Fever. 

I am ready to see the first signs...daffodil blooms, crocuses, budding trees, spring robins, longer days and the warm sun.  Aren't we finished with our hibernation?  Isn't it time to rejuvinate?

I am anxious and eager to start my plantings.  I have all my seeds ready. 

 

My sons and I have been collecting seeds from their favorite vegetables.  My mom brings seeds to us whenever she visits.  In addition, I bought some at the store today on sale for 20 cents and 60 cents!!

I have a new pair of fancy garden gloves from Perch Home (thanks again, Kris!) and a pack of allergy pills.

Come on, c'mon...Spring!

best foot forward -and- on the other hand

If you know me, then you know I can't leave a project unfinished for too long.  Even though I don't love the yarn, I HAD to make the other sock...

 

If you know me, then you would also know that I HATE that the stripes don't align.  Oh well, what's done is done.  I must admit they are super cozy and on cold winter nights they keep me warm.

Of course as soon as I finished my socks, my sons put in requests for socks of their own.  I found a pattern in Erica Knight's "simple knits for little cherubs", made an adjustment with the sizing and here's what I have so far...

   

Sadly, it is too slippery for my son to wear on our wood floors. 

Socks are fun to make but they take a while to knit.  On the other hand...

mittens are much faster to make.  With growing kids, the mittens I made a few months ago have become too small.  With a little tweek of the pattern for the correct measurements and liberties on yarn and design, I made these with the remaining yarn... 

 

I quite like the stripe and thumb in orange.  It makes me happy.

 

Sock it to me!

I got a skein of sock yarn for free and so I thought I'd try knitting a sock for the first time.  I was very excited by the new challenge.  I bought this book and found a pattern to fit the yarn gauge and my novice level.  I should have known from the cover that most of the patterns in this book are intricate.  And intricate patterns seem to never require chunky needles. Oh well.

I'm making them for myself...mostly because I had no idea how my first sock would turn out.  If it's ugly or has gaping holes, I would have to keep it anyway.  So, no pressure.

I got stuck with the directions at the heel but thanks to a little help from a guru from my knitting group, I was able to fudge....I mean, forge ahead.  So here's the work in progress.

And here's the finished product.  Not bad...

Honestly, I don't know if I have it in me to make the other sock.  Maybe I'll wear them mismatched like my son.

The Harvest

Our little garden produced some great tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, peppers and herbs this summer.  Our zucchini plant grew very large but only produced two "fruit".  One was large but the one pictured above is just enormous.  So large, it could be mistaken for a gourd or freaky green pumpkin.  I put the first zucchini into a soup.  Kim chee ggi gae is a soup/stew made with old kim chee and anything else you can find.  And yes, this one was spicy! 

In Korea, one of the most important days of the year is centered around the harvest.  Chu sok is celebrated in autumn (its date changes every year because it is based on the lunar calendar) and it is most similar to Thanksgiving.  My parents are in Korea and they celebrated the holiday with our extended family.  In their absence, instead of honoring this tradition with the foods and festivities...we did nothing.  Because I forgot.  I'm a bad Korean.  If you'd like to read about what we all missed, click here.

There is a huge festival every year in Flushing Meadows Park.  It was held last weekend and I'm totally bummed we missed it.  I will definitely take the kids next year.  Because really, who doesn't love a good parade with delicious food?

Creepy Crawlers

This is a spider people! 

When I took the picture of the flower, I thought it was a bee but I couldn't see the wings.  Then the next day I saw two gigantor spiders with gargantuan webs and I began to wonder what was in the flower.  Whatever it is, it's HUGE. 

It's clear to me now why Halloween stories all feature big spiders and webs.  {{shudder}}  Aren't their webs incredibly beautiful though?  And as long as they are outside my home and I do not accidentally walk though them, I think they are amazingly cool.

 

This morning I found a daddy long legs near the kids shoes.  I tried to catch and release but, have you ever tried to catch a daddy long legs?  I'm sure it'll turn up again at some point...{{shudder}}.