Seasons

Two Garden Days

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Last Friday, the sun came out. It’s probably only a temporary thing. We usually get a patch of sunny, warm(ish) weather in February before returning to rain and gray for months. As one of the other mothers at the bus stop said, “I forget it’s only February and, well, March, April and May will just suck.” But while it lasts, it’s glorious. Caitlyn, of course, thinks this means that the groundhog didn’t see his shadow on Thursday and spring and summer will be arriving early. (I haven’t gotten around to telling her he did.) She’d be happiest if we could …

quilts

Show and Tell

 

Sampler quilts haven’t ever really been my thing. I tend to like a more coherent look, which is weird if you’ve ever seen my interior decor aesthetic. Our living room isn’t matchy-matchy at all, although I will confess to a certain amount of post-purchase, pre-delivery angst regarding our new dining room table and whether it would at least not clash with the chairs we already had. (In case you’re wondering, it’s worked out fine.) So, it’s a little odd that I’ve been working on the Blogger’s Block of the Month since last fall. Every month, a different block. Sure, I’m …

Caitlyn

Dragon Plans

Caitlyn: “I think dragons are like other animals. The boys fight for the girls.” School has been celebrating Lunar New Year, so dragons are a frequent topic these days. Me: “Really?” Caitlyn: “Uh-huh.” Her voice gets all dreamy. “N. fought for me today. He won.” Me: “So, you’re going to grow up and marry N. now?” Caitlyn, still dreamy: “Uh-huh.” I wonder what the young man in question thinks of this. He probably has no idea.

Caitlyn, education, parenting

At least it ended well

First, a rant: Washington’s state constitution says, “[i]t is the paramount duty of the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within its borders…” (Article XI, Section 1). We had one federal holiday and three and one-half snow days last week. Caitlyn went to school for a grand total of 2 hours. We were scheduled to have a school holiday this Friday (I’m not sure why), but that has now been canceled. School will be in session on Friday as a make-up day for one of the snow days last week. If you’ve already made …

sewing

Useful, but possibly Ugly

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Sometimes, when people find out I sew, they gift me with the remnants of their abandoned fabric stash, or perhaps one they have inherited. This can be a fun way to get new-to-me fabric – for free! Sometimes, I get some wonderful stuff this way, like the most of the fabric I used for the candy bags for Christmas last year. Other times, I get fabric that, shall we say, doesn’t thrill me quite as much: I’ve carried these fabrics around for more than a decade. I’m pretty sure I’ve never liked them. Especially that yellow apple print. Shudder. But …

Seasons

Nothing Goes According to Plan

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I was going to post more frequently this week. I was going to finish a project and start at least one other. And then this happened: Caitlyn got her wish. It has, however unlikely, snowed significantly on Seattle. Given that snow like this is unusual, everything around here shuts down. The train runs, but school is closed, and so are lots of businesses. It’s oddly felt like a Saturday, over and over again, every day this week. It’s still coming down now, although it’s shifted back to snow after a stint of sleet/freezing rain that’s left a sheath of ice …