Moves Like Jagger?

That post title is misleading. 

Neither Pop Pop nor Pretty "got the moves like Jagger," but we are moving.

Yes, in a little over a month, Pop Pop and I are planning a move. It will be a local move, with little to no dancing (maybe singing though...), to a condo in a neighboring town. I am overwhelmed by the process, and I honestly wish it were over already, but I suppose that is pretty normal. The outside will look something like this rendering:

It will be shiny and new, and we will no longer be responsible for snow removal or lawn care, which is good. Our little starter home of 26 years is paid off, so we won't list it until we have moved out, which will make it easier on the real estate agent and the cats. Cats hate moving and people parading through their place!

To be perfectly honest. Pretties hate having people parading through their place, too! I mean, you never know what someone will touch or see, and keeping a place clean enough to "show" while you are still living there is difficult at best! So, we know we are blessed to be doing it this way...but the waiting is tough! I mean, everything is not yet shiny and new at the condo...

But it is getting there! I hear that counters and cabinets will be installed soon, and this will start to look more like our new living space, so that is pretty exciting! This is what the model looks like, from an angle similar to mine above (fun to imagine with furniture!):

While we wait for buildings to be finished and loans to be closed, we will continue the great cleanout and start our packing...which explains all the boxes in my living room, lol! And we will spend time loving some of our favorite people, who will live just a little bit closer after the move. 

Happy Baby! I love a happy baby!

"Build house, Gee!" This kid loves to build and climb!

Yes, that will be good indeed! I will also be a little closer to work, and less commute time means more knitting time! Speaking of knitting, I finally put a lid on my 7-year Beekeepers Quilt, that I've been working on since 2013! 

That means that I can finally take down that counter on the side bar of the blog...I got up to 243 hexipuffs (though I only put together 233). I may use the other 10 for something else, but I may not. Either way, I am so excited to put this piece in my craft room as a pop of colors!

Prayers and moving mojo are greatly appreciated as Pop Pop and I navigate the next few weeks! If you have moving tips and tricks, please share. It's a little surreal, and 26 years is a lot of history here, but we are ready. New beginnings are good things, and every knitter could use a good excuse to knit some new dishcloths...so that's where you'll find me while we wait!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

A Doll's House

I will start by offering an apology to any of you who are seriously into the miniatures game, which I (clearly) am not. There was a time I thought I would be, circa 1992-ish (???), and that's when I bought this lovely piece of work:

I actually bought it as a kit, built it, painted it and decorated it. Then I furnished it with items I made myself from balsa wood, cardboard, foam and fabric scraps, using plans from a book I checked out of the local library. 

The wallpapers were purchased from a shop that specialized in miniatures, and the patterns are to scale for the house. 

Carpet in the living room, bedroom and sewing room are small cuts from upholstery samples I found while perusing for craft supplies, and the kitchen floor is fashioned from scraps of wallpaper, glitter and a clear-coat varnish of some sort.

The upstairs carpeting was created from 1-inch squares of felt, and that is probably one of my favorite parts of this dollhouse. I glued them down one at a time!

I made curtains for all the windows and doors, using fabric, lace and ribbon scraps I had laying around, because I have always been into all of the crafts, and sewing is no exception! All-in-all, this dollhouse was so dear to me that I never let my daughter play with it. I'm a little embarrassed about that, because she really wanted to play with it...and it is a toy...but I held fast for some reason. 

I do still have a couple of the wood pieces I made, and the original chair and sofa. But balsa wood is weak, and when I finally let a couple of kids play with the darn house, many of them bit the dust. The original beds (with their fancy, curvy, carved frames and headboards) and sewing table (with it's impossibly skinny legs) are no more. 

As I entered into my knitting years, I crafted some dolls of an almost appropriate size, 

and they did need a place to sleep, so I eventually made three beds in plastic canvas for them a few years back. The dolls have been pretty happy with those, and there have even been a couple of sleepovers with the barbies...but there is (sadly) not much photo evidence of that.

When Jess was too old to play with the dollhouse, I gave it to a friend whose daughters were also not allowed to play with it (although I told their mom that I wanted SOMEONE to play with it). Then I had my first grandchild, a girl. One of those other girls that couldn't touch the dollhouse growing up contacted me, asking if I wanted it back for this new dear girl to play with. What goes around comes around, isn't that what they say?

So I have had the dollhouse in my little house again for the past 10 years or so, and my granddaughters have LOVED playing with it! My daughter is still a little resentful, so she doesn't play with it, and she has two boys that probably won't play with it. (To be fair, the trim is splintering and falling off, and the pieces inside are probably no longer as safe as they may have once been...and the boys do have other dolls and many, many toys!)

So, in my continued Cleanout of 2021, this one will be leaving my home. Just about everyone is ready to see it go, but I blog it to hold onto the memories, and to remind myself to let the kids play with the toys already! There is nothing so precious as the heart of a child, and aren't we all kids at heart sometimes? So play with the kids, and play with the toys, and live in the moment today...because tomorrow is never guaranteed.

Do you have a favorite childhood toy memory? Drop me a comment, and tell me about it!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

Cleanup Update!

The cats are super stressed out by The Great Cleanout of 2021. Or not...

They weren't even bothered when Bernie joined them!

We are making progress, and today the Mister got involved, cleaning off the shelves that used to be over the bar...you know, the one we tore out when Allen was 9 or 10... He also cleaned off the window sills down there. Busy morning!

This box now holds most of the bar paraphernalia, and a couple more things, that were gifted today to a guy who still has a bar! Perhaps we will visit The Blue Room to see our stuff sometime...and perhaps not. We gave him permission to toss what he doesn't want...lol!

Getting rid of stuff is stressful, but also freeing. I feel somehow lighter! I am not somehow lighter...not at all...but I feel lighter, and that is something!

I think I'll go sit in the sunshine with the cats and knit something. Make it a good day, friends!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

The Great Cleanout of 2021

So, last week, I introduced you to Swedish Death Cleaning , and today marks the end of week 2 in the Great Cleanout of 2021 in my home. That means I have more treasures to show you before they are relegated to charitable donations (or the trash...some of this stuff goes directly to the bin...lol!) First up is band paraphernalia!

I started in the band in 4th grade, playing the flute. In 5th grade, I tried the clarinet, which I played through the end of 6th grade. Over the summer, I learned how to play the trumpet, which I continued until I graduated high school. Along the way, I also played the trombone for a bit and the french horn for my senior year of concert band and orchestra, alongside the trumpet for marching band, jazz band and pep band. Yes, I was in all the bands! Concert uniforms included blue pants and jackets, and these beauties:

Through the years, I collected sweatshirts (see above) and jewelry and buttons representing my love of band (and music...I have always loved music!) and some other fun things, too.

See the national honor society pins?

Wow! Buttons from the 1985 inauguration
I attended with the BHS marching band!

But that's not all! No, that's not all! In the 6 boxes I took out of the attic to empty, I also found Pop Pop's old Navy uniform (look! the hat still fits! lol), a sweatshirt I made my dad when my kids were very small (December 1992) and my Girl Scout sash from Juniors! 

I'm not sure my dad ever wore this. It has been 
in a box, in my attic for 25 years.

Six boxes. That's 6 boxes my kids will not have to go through when I am gone. Allen and Jess, you're welcome! Also, there are some fun things I found that I will soon be sending your way! 

And the song that runs through my head while I have 25 years of the attic strewn about the living room starts, "From the window, to the wall! 'Til the sweat drips..." The rest of the lyrics are probably inappropriate for my family blog, so I won't post a link... (The song was released in 2002, and I can't believe it lives in my head! Maybe I can blame that on having teenagers in that time period! Lol...)

As I get ready to print my 2020 blog book, I am reminded that my blog is a great place to store my memories, and no one has to clean out the attic if I store them here! And yes, I do print my digital content...it may go up in a fire someday, or it may be something my kids fight over (No! I want Mom's Blog Books!...yeah, probably not), or it may just be a tangible reminder I can look at whenever I want. Perhaps it will give Allen and Jess a chance to do some Swedish Death Cleaning of their own in 30 or 40 years!

From the window the wall, thanks for stopping by, friends! Whatever the status of your junk, may you Knit in Good Health today and always!

Spring Cleaning

"Clean up! Clean up! Everybody, everywhere - 

Clean up! Clean up! Everybody do your share!"

So started our favorite clean-up song when my kids were little! Yes, it is from Barney. Yes, my kids watched Barney. Yes, I watched it with them. At the time, I think we all enjoyed it, even though many of my mom-friends just. could. not. Barney., and I know they judged me for it. You know what, judge-y mom-friends? Your judgement does not determine my viewing habits! If I want to watch Barney, I will watch Barney! (These days, I do not want to watch Barney. Perhaps I have come to my senses?)

Anyhoo...back to cleaning up. Lately I have been looking at my phone storage (as you do), and wondering when I will actually reach capacity. Right now, this very minute, I have 5,262 high-quality photos and videos on my phone (and memory card), along with dozens of apps and other fun stuff...and I hope to keep this phone for at least another year. That means that I will need to clean it up...

After all, I have a new grandson, and Sweetie and I are planning a big trip overseas in early 2020...there will be more photos! I need to find a storage solution for all that digital content in the next few weeks. Any suggestions, friends? At this point, I am thinking of getting a thumb drive with a bunch of storage, but I am not sure if those "go bad" eventually. Another thought is an external hard drive (always a good idea, IMHO)... I wonder what do all my tech-savvy friends do? They probably do not read my blog...hahaha! Knitting friends, how do you save all those pics of your knitting and family?

I know that I will feel great when I have cleaned up my phone, but this figuring it out has me a bit stressed. I cannot just move it out and lay it aside, without worrying that I might lose the record of precious memories... For now, I will do my research and uninstall some apps to make space for more of the things that are precious to me. 

As I think about all the digital "junk" in my life, I have a new appreciation for all the "sin junk" that I no longer have to carry around. Jesus has taken all of that on himself, even the junk that has not yet happened (but it will, I am making new mistakes and sinning every day...ugh!). All I can do is say, "Thank you, Jesus, for cleaning up ME!" If only I would decide to stop holding on to my guilt and shame, as though they are precious photos that I want to look at every day, that would be awesome. 

For now, just like with those digital photos, I tentatively lay down my sin and the negative feelings as I confess my sin to the Father every day. As I try not to pick them up again, I trust that Jesus has taken them to the cross. And because I have been cleaned up by Jesus, I call on the Holy Spirit living within me to help me make better choices. 

It is a process, so as I lay things down, I fill my life (and my phone) with good things that I am thankful for...a good Word, the coming of Easter and Springtime, cats and yarn, and salvation for my soul! Even though the days are sometimes hard, the years are flying by, and then one day - heaven forever. Amen and Alleluia!

Wanna join me? 

Until then, thanks for stopping by, and Knit in Good Health!

20...of 5,262...photos and videos on my phone. lol!