Seven Years

Today is Natalie's 7th birthday. I can NOT believe it has been seven years already!! She arrived looking like this:
And has grown into a lovely, extremely creative and artistic girl:
The only trouble is, now she says, "I can't wait to be 10."

Fashion Plates

I am not a fashion plate. I am not fashion forward. I would like to be, but honestly I just don't care that much. I try not to look like a frumpy slob when I'm out in public, but sometimes it can't be helped.

As a kid, though, I would spend hours drawing dresses and dreaming up designs. Then, one Christmas, these came along and I was in love:
Did anyone else have Fashion Plates?? They were THE BEST. EVER. I don't know what became of mine, but I miss them.

It Continues

Wow. I didn't mean to be gone that long! We had a great Christmas and New Year with our families, although I was very disappointed by the total lack of snow in the Midwest. Now that the holidays are over, I can show you a few projects that I finished:
The Danica scarf, for Chelsea.
This is a sort of cowl, big neckwarmer, accessory sort of thing...technically, it's a mobius.

Now that I am home, the knitting obligations do not end. I am working on a scarf that will be a thank-you gift for a friend who helped us immensely on Christmas Eve:
This is Anne Hanson's lovely La Novia pattern.

I am also working on one last for-hire scarf for a child who wanted stripes:
There will be lavender in it, too - just haven't gotten there yet. No pattern, just making it up as I go.

Since we were gone for over a week, we had our mail held. When I picked it up, I was thrilled to find a package containing yarn! Some time ago, I had purchased some roving and later had the brilliant idea to ask my friend Erin to spin it for me since she has a spinning wheel and I am very slow with my drop spindle. She obliged and now I have this lovely yarn waiting to be knit up:
Thanks for hanging in there during the hiatus. I promise to be back again soon.

An Unintended Hiatus

Hm. I didn't mean to keep the blog silent for so long. It was those darn scarves! Since my last post, I have knit 6 scarves (all different patterns), 35 felted fortune cookies and 3 hats. Oh, and a mobius/neckwarmer thingie (twice - first time it was huuuuge).

Anyway, I just wanted to pop in to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and holiday season. Greg and I will be participating in the Christmas Eve services at Cross Point, so if you by some strange chance are just looking for somewhere to go in Nashville, come! 2:00, 3:30 and 5:00. Then our family will be leaving after the last service and heading into the night to Missouri. We'll spend a few days there, then head to Illinois to visit my family before coming back home.

I may post from the road...we'll see!

Finally, I can share

I've had this wee outfit finished for weeks now, but wanted to postpone sharing it until I had given it to our friends, Matt and Holly. They are expecting their first baby in a few weeks (or so) and I knew I wanted to knit something for her. I figured they would be inundated with cute little pink goodies, so I wanted to make it both cute AND cool. Matt is the creative director at our church and happens to be a self-admitted Mac geek.

It didn't take me long to figure out what I wanted to do:
I got a lot of hugs.

Step Into the Wayback Machine...

Wow. I haven't seen this video in years!! The hair...the shades...the jackets...and a great song. Enjoy!

The Power of Words

Whoever came up with the old saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," was clearly in denial.

Our tongues are one of our most powerful weapons. I notice it with my children all the time. Even our tone can pack a punch. I am trying to catch myself in the act and make note of how I am coming across to my kids. I'm also realizing more and more that it's the little things that make a big impact...for instance, saying "I'm proud of you," or paying a compliment. Sometimes I think those things, but I get distracted and never actually say them to the person I'm with. But I know from my own experience that receiving those words can make a huge difference in my outlook.

Yesterday I received a card from my sister and I asked her if I could share what she wrote. I was feeling extremely frustrated about something and was having a hard time seeing how the situation could ever improve. Reading her words completely changed my attitude. They had nothing to do with my frustration and offered no solution...but the encouragement made all the difference. Here's what she wrote:

"Have I told you how proud I am of you? You have grown into a delightful adult and a great mom. I think I would like you if I just happened to meet you on the street (but really, how often do we meet people on the street?) I love you dearly - Karen."

In this week of Thanksgiving, I challenge you to use your words for good and not for evil. Say those little words of encouragement that often go unspoken. You never know, you may just have the exact words someone needs to hear.

A Full Life

Thanks to the wonders of technology, I recently reconnected with a few old friends on Facebook. These are people with whom I went to elementary school. Reality smacked me upside the head when I realized that I probably have not seen these folks for 25 years. Twenty five!! Good gracious.

We gave each other a brief synopsis of what we are all doing now and commented on all of our cute children. What really made me stop and think, though, was that two of these old friends made the exact same comment to me:

"It looks like you have a very full life."

Wow.

Of course, then I had to stop and ask myself, do I really? Do I lead a full life?

I have been pondering that question for several days now. I want to live a full life - very much, in fact. I can't say that I have always succeeded. We all have seasons that are challenging and those that are smooth sailing, but I am learning (ever so slowly) to choose peace and contentment even during the challenging seasons.

When I step back and evaluate my life right now, yes, there are some things I would like to change. I would love for finances to never be an issue. I would love a slightly bigger house, I would love to be able to travel. But I have the basics. I have a husband who loves me. I have two very healthy and fantastic children. We have great relationships with our parents and families. I have the privilege of staying home and educating my children. We laugh a lot. We love our church and are very involved there. I have made some wonderful new friends this year.

My old friends were right. I do have a very full life. And I am very thankful.

Just Because

I was looking through my files and found this video, taken when Ethan was almost 3. He was pretending to take my order in a restaurant.

Ethan at 23 months, taking my order from Julie Persinger on Vimeo.

Dreary Weather Leads to Movie Watching

I don't know about you, but cold and gloomy weather makes me want to hunker down and watch movies. Well, and knit...but that's a given.

Here's a clip from the beginning of one of my favorite movies - Charade (1963):

What are some of your favorites?

Sometimes I Have to Wonder

Out

Today is a sad day. I ran out of two of my favorite products.

All summer I used Philosphy's Purity facial cleanser. Now I am out and my face will no longer be pure.
For several months now, I have been shampoo-free. Yes, I still wash my hair, but I have been using WEN Cleansing Conditioner (which I LOVE...I just don't love the price). Now I am out and I'll probably be going back to shampoo for a while (see aforementioned cost issue). Sigh.
I shall console myself with my new green hat (knit earlier this week).

Wee Li'l Knits

I've been doing a lot of baby knitting lately. I didn't know how to knit when my own children were babies, so it has been fun making little things for a change.

One friend's baby received booties from me when she was born, but has now outgrown them. Apparently she won't keep regular socks on, so my friend asked me to knit some larger booties. The mary janes are knit out of Schaefer Anne, double-stranded (sorry, no links today - don't have time right now!):
These are knit out of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport, double-stranded:
This same friend asked if I would also be willing to knit a baby sweater, so I obliged. This is knit with KnitPicks Swish:
There's one more that I'm dying to share, but don't want to post it here until I give it to its intended recipient!

Now I'm not quite sure what to knit. Suggestions?

Happy Election Day

There has been so much unpleasantness surrounding this election, but rather than get into any of that on this important day, I thought I would give you some edu-tainment instead.

Enjoy a few minutes of Schoolhouse Rock...and go vote, if you haven't already!

I Have to Know.

OK, I have to know. How do you apply your mascara?

I was getting ready for Mom's Group this morning and began to wonder how other people do their makeup. I'd love to say I was thinking deep, spiritual thoughts, but I wasn't. I have to be honest...I can multi-task with the best of 'em, but when I'm applying mascara, I can really only think about applying mascara. It's tricky that way.

Here's my routine: I always start with my right eye, top lashes, and I work from the inside corner outward. Then bottom lashes the same way. Repeat on left eye. Oh, but I do my left eye mascara with my left hand. I don't do my left eye's eye shadow with my left hand...just the mascara. Let's not be too crazy.

So how about you? Tell me about your mascara application routine. I need to know.

I'm Curious

Sometimes I feel guilty that I am not using my college degree. Then again, sometimes I am relieved that I decided not to pursue my original plan of grad school. I do use my years of violin training when I play at church, but on a daily basis my (expensive) degree (Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance) is not utilized.

I don't think I am alone in this, though - so I'm curious...are you actively using your degree or training? If so, in what way? If not, do you think you will at some point?

Frazzled No More

I've been feeling frazzled lately...scattered and stressed. My life used to be pretty slow and boring, but this is the season of homeschool co-op and Mom's Group, which both meet weekly. Then there's our regular homeschool day on top of that. I'm also scheduled to teach some classes at The Neighborhood Knit Shop. It's still not a terribly fast-paced life compared to some of you, I'm sure - but lately it has started to feel hectic.

Yesterday, though, I realized one reason why. I forgot to put the October daily pages in my beloved Franklin Covey planner.

Instead, I have been operating off the October monthly pages, which is fine for scheduled events - but I use the daily pages for my to-do list each day and without those pages in my planner, I have been trying to remember everything! Sadly, my memory ain't what she used to be.

So yesterday I took action and put the remaining daily pages in the October section of my planner, as well as all of the November pages. It was such a relief to be able to make my to-do list and check things off! Now I feel like I'm on track again.

I'm curious, though...what helps you stay on track with your schedule? Planner? Online calendar? Post-it notes?

This one stopped me cold

Recently I pulled out a book I've had for a few years, but never actually read: Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning. I love his writing, but it is not light reading. And he uses a lot of big words sometimes. And you have to think. However, it is always worth plowing through all of that because Manning can just whomp you over the head with truth sometimes.

That happened to me two nights ago. I read the following excerpt and I'm still pondering it now:

"It is of immense importance to understand that every word spoken and written about God is delivered in the language of analogy. In any divine analogy, there is a similarity between the human words used about God and the reality of God himself; there is also, however, a radical dissimilarity. What is affirmed in one breath must be denied in the next. For example, we liken the divine love to human love. The similarity induces us to think that we are getting a grip on God's love. And yet, though human love is the best image we have, it is utterly inadequate to express the love of the Infinite. Not because human love is too sugary and sentimental or because it is too passionate and emotional, but because it can never fully compare with that source whence it came - the passion-emotion love of the Totally Other.

The more we let go of our concepts and images, which always limit God, the bigger God grows and the more we approach the mystery of his indefinability. When we overlook the dissimilarity, we begin to speak with obnoxious familiarity about the Holy, make ludicrous comments such as 'I could never imagine God doing such a thing,' calmly predict Armageddon, glibly proclaim infallible discernment of the will of God, and trivialize God, trimming the claws of the Lion of Judah."

Blog Action Day: Poverty

Did you know that today is Blog Action Day? The focus this year is on poverty.

A few years ago, when my family's financial situation was at its worst, I thought things were bad. BAD. Scary words like foreclosure and bankruptcy swirled around in my mind, threatening to undo me. I prayed. And I prayed. And I prayed. Do you know what I realized?

As bad as things were, I was still rich. For that day, at least, I had a proper house. We had two vehicles. I had heat and air conditioning. Clean water. Plenty of clothes. Food. Yes, things were difficult and stressful, but I realized that I really have no idea what bad means for the rest of the world.

I'm sure you have seen images and read statistics, but while we in the US are being inundated with the word "CHANGE!" right now, please think about making some changes of your own, if you haven't already. There are many wonderful organizations that are working non-stop to fight poverty around the world. I am including this video from Compassion that explains why they do what they do.

Click here for more information on sponsoring a child through Compassion.

Wishing

Money is tight for most of us these days, right? What with the increased price of groceries and it costing about $4,273 to fill up your car with gas and all. I know my family is feeling the pinch in a big way. Greg has been working ridiculous hours on a job in Murfreesboro since this summer - something that's not even related to his new business...and by "ridiculous hours" I mean that I've lost count of the times that he's left the house around 8 AM and returned around 10 AM the next day, only to take a nap and go back out there the same day. The job is nearly done, or so he says, but we are still waiting on the paycheck. Until then, things are beyond tight.

But if I had an extra $20 to spend just on myself today, I would snap this ring (in a sz 8) up in a heartbeat!!
What about you? If you had $20 to spend on something for yourself right now, what would it be?