Life leaves no time for.....life

"There just aren't enough hours in the day for all that I want to accomplish!"
I have come to the realization that I am so busy with life that I have no time for, well, life.
Ever been there? "So much to do, so little time." There are a lot of quotes about it. I guess I should be encouraged. I'm definitely not the only one who feels/has felt this way. But somehow it doesn't really help. I'm glad I'm not alone; I'm not abnormal or freakish. But that doesn't add more seconds to my day..... ;) And I can't add more time by not sleeping. I'm already so sleep deprived that a decent night's sleep(which means I get a whole 3 or 4 hrs straight w/o being woke up once) only makes me more tired. Which seems backwards, but that's the way it works....

So what are all these things I want to get done, anyway??
teach my kids
play w/ my kids
cuddle my kids
clean the house/feed the family(and myself!)/do the laundry/clean the kids/cut their hair (you know, all the wife/mama stuff)
read
knit
design

Somehow those last 3 get left in the dust most of the time. I realized last night that even when I do have time for me (which usually means I am frantically knitting or writing patterns) I don't enjoy it as much as I used to. I feel guilty. Guilty that I am not actively engaging w/ my family(kids). Guilty that I'm not providing someone with something that they need.

Wait.

Knitters need patterns, right?

Goodbye guilt. Hello knitting! (goodbye sleep!)

Continuing with the Shameless Plugs

So, just to continue the self-advertisement..... There is another sock club coming out in a couple months that will be featuring some of my designs....
You can find out more about it here. This one will also include a design from Janine LeCras.
Hey, Unique Sheep yarns and Alice in Wonderland. Hard to beat! Go sign up...(if you knit. ;D)

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And now we pause for a word from our sponsor....
Well, not exactly sponsor, but at any rate- shameless plug insertion here.
A LobugDesigns original pattern is going to be featured in a lovely lace-weight yarn club. Lace weight. (It needed repeated) My very own lace pattern will be included with some gorgeous yarn in this yarn club. Check it out!

LotS II April

The second shipment of the second year of The Lord of the stRings Sock Club has gone out! Most people have received their package.If you haven't, you might want to wait to see the rest of this post.


Undomiel

Inspired by Arwen, the daughter of Elrond Half-elven.
Appendix A of the Return of the King tells of the meeting of Aragorn son of Arathorn and Arwen Undomiel daughter of Elrond, Evenstar of the elves. They met in Rivendell under the trees, and Aragorn believed himself to be seeing Luthien Tinuviel once again walking in silver and blue. But they were doomed to be apart until the day Aragorn took up his inheritance and the white tree bloomed again in Gondor. Then she came to him, and they enjoyed the peace of the Days of the King together.

This was a difficult sock for me to design. There was so much I wanted to put into it. But when I got around to working on it, I was 3 months pregnant, and horribly sick. Quite honestly, the last thing on my mind was knitting- and much less, designing. But I had other designs that had to be done on a deadline, and a baby coming. I knew there was no way I could design for several months after Babybug came, so I forced myself to work on this design.




For all that was going on at the time, I am very pleased with how this sock turned out. It is another one that really didn't end up like what was in my head- but that's ok. I love the scalloped beaded cuff- and the lace pattern is my own creation, so it is a special sock for me. What do you think of it?

Book Review 2

Saint Patrick by Jonathan Rogers is a biography of Ireland’s most beloved saint. Rogers takes his information from the writings of St. Patrick himself; and includes various legends about the deeds of the great man. Patrick’s two known writings are included in the Appendices.

I enjoyed this book. I love stories about St. Patrick, and to have available his own writings and Rogers’ extrapolations from them are great. I liked the way Jonathan Rogers brought out the known facts of St. Patrick’s life and illustrated them with various legends and myths that are told about him.

I didn’t feel that I really learned very much new about St. Patrick from this book; except perhaps for the fact that he was somewhat of a borderline renegade priest (in that he took his commission from God as being greater and more important than his commission from the Roman Catholic Church). I really liked having Patrick’s own writings available at the end of the book, and thought that was a great touch to the authenticity of the work.

I don’t really think it’s necessary to give an overview of the book here. If you don’t know anything about St. Patrick, this is a fabulous first book for learning about him. If you do know about St. Patrick, this is a nice little addition to your library- particularly for having access to his own translated letters. Otherwise, it’s a nice little book- but not one I would have spent money on personally (I got it from Booksneeze- free, for reviewing it).

Happy Easter!!

He is Risen!!! I am so thankful!!

I wish you all a very Happy Easter and hope you are able to enjoy friends and family and celebrate. :-)

This is what I gave my family for Easter this year:
A 27 lb. mountain of granola.
I haven't been able to make granola for my family since Babybug's arrival. (Thank you, Agata, Mom, and Kristal for keeping us supplied in the interim!!!) If I were capable of just doing one or 2 trays of it each week or so, it might work out all right. But I've never been capable of doing little things like that. It has to be all or nothing with me. ;-) So granola making is a 4-hr ordeal. Hopefully, those 9 gallons will last us at least 9 weeks!!! Last time, 14gallons only made it 6 weeks. I think my family is growing....
Anyway, I've had some requests; so my Easter gift to you, dear reader, is the recipe I use for granola!
This is kinda hard to write, b/c I don't measure very much when I cook. I'm a slap-dash sorta cook. Designing in cooking? Things usually turn out slightly different every time- but here's the basics, and you can experiment and make it your own. :-)

Lobug's Granola:
Recipe for 1 cookie sheet's worth (repeat to desired amount!)

Pre-heat oven to 400deg.
Place Wax Paper or equivalent on flat surface for cooling.(easy clean)
Cover Cookie Sheet with Non-stick Aluminum Foil for easy cleaning- and less oil use.
In large bowl, Mix:
3to4cups of rolled oats
~1/3to2/3c of desired fruit/nut mix(I use a fruit salad trail mix-we don't do nuts. And I add sweet-flake coconut as well)
~1/4c oil(your choice- vegetable, canola; I haven't tried olive, but it would probably work) use more oil if you don't have Non-stick Foil!!
~1/2to2/3c of warm honey

Mix until well-coated, scrape onto cookie sheet. Spread it out flat-ish for even cooking. Bake until golden brown on top and edges.
Remove from oven and mix by folding edges of granola in and under the center. Flatten again and place back in oven until golden brown on top and edges again.
Remove from oven and spread onto covered flat surface until cool. Enjoy!!

There it is! I hope you enjoy it! It is possible to do small batches (I think I did once upon a time before there were children under my feet....), but I think it saves money to buy bulk....