the best Christmas present ever . . . .

two christmases ago, while the 9TS was so sick and chilly most of the time, kidlet decided to crochet him a lap blanket for christmas.  she inadvertently underestimated the time it would take to finish the project and as a result, it wasn't quite done when she presented it to her dad on christmas morning. he told her it was the best present ever.  Unfortunately, he ran out of time and the blanket sat in my bottom bureau draw for almost two years as kidlet had lost heart and was having such a rough time coping.

i did notice about a week before christmas, when i went to grab a throw, that the blanket was missing but since my brain is also missing, i just figured i has stashed it in kidlet's old bedroom to have more space.

enter christmas morning, and my present turned out to be the finished blanket.  she decided since she had made it for her father and she knew how much that meant to me, that it should be a family affair.  it is a beautiful blue and white lap blanket and she says she will continue to work on it until it is full size.  i don't care what size it is, i just love that it is one more thing that binds our little family.

p.s.  if i close my eyes, snuggle it tight and inhale, i swear i can still smell his scent on it.  LOVE!

meow . . .

joanie's birthday is december 8th and i actually had her present made on time but unfortunately somewhere between the design process, the fabric and the stuffing, that frankenstein-ish creature with the erogenous tail is now residing out at the curb awaiting the garbage man tomorrow and no, i am not sharing a photo.  it was all too sad.

but yesterday, i finished its replacement(s) and gave them to her after our morning walk through the hood.  

(and yes, joanie, i stole your photo off FB because your kitchen counter is prettier than my workshop space.) 

just so you understand, j has three cats.  a very grumpy black and white cat named Athena.  a beautiful solid gray named Sheba and a small totally lovable, lithe tabby named Annie.

what else for a cat lover who has everything.  

random kelli . . .

jeanne:   I want a dinosaur suit.

kelli:      {snort}  I want a supermodel suit.

jeanne:   How cool would we be!!!!!!

kelli:      About as cool as we are now, silly!!!

jeanne:   Then we rock and don't need the suits.  ST.

kelli:      Ha!  They would come in handy at times.

jeanne:   Think of the awesome powers they would give us.  I could even deal with the tiny front arms.

kelli:     Haha!!!   Instead of Benny and the Jets we could be Kelli and T-Rex.

love this girl.

this.that.and.the.other.thing

since i'm sporting a Minions bandaid on one finger and a sliced knuckle on the next guy over, tonight's stroganoff better be good.  remind me to get the butcher to do the dirty work next time.  actually, remind me to take my knives to the sharpener.  or book a room in the ER.  or all of the above.

thanks, Les.  miss you too.

did i tell you i got a new camera.  i finally broke down as soon as the Canon 70D was released in September.  slurp.  i always swore there was something wrong with my old 50D from the time i opened the box but instead of doing something about it, i kept on using it, whining the entire time.  finally i decided i just wasn't that good a photographer and stopped shooting.

guess what?!  it was the camera.  not that i will ever be on the cover of National Geographic or even the back of a milk carton, but it makes me happy to know i can still get a decent shot now and again.  happy.  happy.

kidlet is still cooking up a storm.  the other day i left her totally to her own devices and she yelled a five minute dinner warning up the stairs.  perfectly grilled swordfish, onion roasted taters and corn.  kidlet you rock.  take one giant step forward.  oh heck.  add one banana step too.  you deserve it.

she's also been crocheting up a storm.  we took goodies over to her favorite staff members in winter park . . . her summer vacation spot.  three baby blankets, lots of hats and purses.

after our jaunt to tampa, we made another one to orlando to check out UCF.  enormous campus.  huge campus.  now all we have to do is wait for the mail lady to deliver the results.  USF, UCF or FSU.  is there an acronym for an excited grandmother?

that's it for now, but i promise to be back with more mayhem.  the fog is lifting.

too cool . . .

we had a visitor last night and i'm still trying to figure out how he got here.  we took down the tree his relatives used to gain access to a lower roof and then the pool cage.  maybe he has super powers of flight.  maybe its Rocky Raccoon in our very own back yard!!!!

kidlet got bored.  when i returned home from our camera club meeting, she showed me some shots she'd taken.

and this is what you get when you decide to sail a flotilla of paper boats across the pool at night with the underwater lights on.  too cool!!!!!

changes . . .

i wish i could say i was back but a general malaise seems to have dropped over me and the things i used to get the most enjoyment from are no longer tickling my fancy.  not a big deal, my mojo will come back.  it just took a walk somewhere.

so instead, i'm going to tell tales on my favorite munchkin . . . kidlet.  she'd been doing so much better.  the world is finally looking a little rosy.  finally she understands that some of her feelings are exactly as they should be.  that they are normal feelings and not manifestations of depression.  point in case, we took my granddaughter to Tampa two weekends ago to the USF open house.  After attending presentations, seminars and doing a campus tour but before heading for Five Guys for some mega fries, i drove over to the northwest corner of the campus and said a final goodbye/prayer to Moffitt.

it didn't take long and we were all soon munching happily and popping peanuts in our chubby little cheeks.  suddenly, i noticed that kidlet was being awfully quiet and when she asked for the keys to the car, i let her go.  when the rest of us finished lunch, we headed to the car and there she was with huge gulping sobs racking her tiny frame.  hooray for kidlet!  does that sound odd?  shouldn't.  this was the very first time that she had an appropriate response to a overwhelming emotion.  she didn't try to suppress it.  she didn't shirk from it, she let it flow.  good healthy tears for her dad.  kidlet, you rock!!!!

and she's still doing well in the kitchen.  she made Friday's beef stew from start to finish. before when we've cooked together, she's always handed the chopping to me.  with her familial tremor, she and knives are not always the best combo but this time she forged on while i went on the pool deck to let pip play for a bit.  when i wandered back in, there she was, tears streaming down her face.  rut roh, what now?  but she looked me squarely in the eyes, and asked if THIS was a normal reaction to cutting onions.  i burst into laughter.  yes, kidlet, perfectly normal. you are now a cook!!!!  it's the small victories that taste the sweetest.

tonight, she was supposed to have her regular tuesday swordfish but instead, she had a Relay for Life meeting.  yup, she is back volunteering for them . . . another fine blessing.  tired of swordfish, i had made a big mess of chili.  when she returned home it was too late to grill.  but surprisingly, she asked for some chili.  i guess here is where i explain that kidlet is not fond of beans.  or peas.  or lentils.  actually, i was surprised she asked for the chili at all.  but then i watched her grab a small ramekin from a cabinet and just knew what she was going to use it for.  somethings in life never change.

until next time . . .

we're having company for dinner tomorrow night which in and of itself, is no big deal and will be lots of fun, but then my miserable housekeeping skills come back to bite me in the bottom and i panic at the thought of  the dust bunnies dancing across the floors, strewn cat litter in every corner, paw prints on wood surfaces and nose prints on windows.  i need to shave those little guys and make them wear little flannel booties.

today is cleaning day.  the dining room is done.  i had to empty the canister.  the living room is done.  i had to empty the canister.  the hall just needs to be mopped but i still had to empty the canister.  my Dyson animal is one hard working beast . . . at least when i remember to use it.

the gravy is simmering away on the stove.  there was just one little accident while transferring the chopped onions to the hot oil . . . some of the onions wiggled loose and went swimming in the water boiling for tea.  i have a feeling this batch of iced tea may not be my best even if kidlet and i did fish them out . . . eventually.

yesterday, the pool deck got bleached.  the furniture needs scrubbing too but that can wait.  one step at a time.

and so by tomorrow, we will be in some semblance of order when our guest arrive.  and then.  i can forget all about cleaning until next time.