March 15, 2015

March is a lion?

We have had the most beautiful weather this month (at least up until this weekend where we are finally getting some rain per the normal weather patterns). The unseasonably warm weather has brought nature to life much earlier than anticipated. The tulip trees (some of you know them as magnolias) were beginning to bloom in February. FEBRUARY.


Beautiful weather did make for a wonderful time at this year's Rose City Yarn Crawl. Ten of us roamed across the Portland Metro area to six yarn stores (there were 15 participating), enjoyed lunch in the sun and enabled yarn and pattern purchases for one another.


You can clearly see we visited Twisted, Knit Purl and Dublin Bay. But we also saw Littlelamb and Ewe, Close Knit and Blizzard and enjoyed some ice cream at Salt & Straw. I didn't purchase something at every store we visited, but I definitely enjoyed each one.

I have definitely continued to be busy. Even with the Saturday off for the yarn crawl, it was still not a restful day for me. School, work, practicum, and activities continue to keep me hopping.

Health
Still not getting up to exercise. I have managed to get in a walk here and there, but they are not regular activities. I had a checkup and a mammogram though to get some baselines. I am happy to say the girls are in fine form and no issues there. My checkup shows I do need to pay more attention to food and exercise as my sugar levels remain elevated enough to keep me in the pre-diabetes watch zone.

Knitting
I am a poor, poor crafter. I have cast on Rob's hat and have knit perhaps 5 rows on it. I had the original goal to finish it in January, then I pushed it to February. It may become my March goal.

Reading
I have 14 books towards my goal of 75 for the year. I finished the following books since the last post:
  • The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (Alan Bradley)
  • Yes Please (Amy Poehler)
  • Garden Spells (Sarah Addison Allen)
  • The Girl Who Chased the Moon (Sarah Addison Allen)
  • Waking Kate (ebook, Sarah Addison Allen)
  • Harbor Island (Carla Neggers)
  • Rock Point (ebook, Carla Neggers)
  • Tapestry of Fortunes (Elizabeth Berg)
  • Thanksgiving Prayer (Debbie Macomber)*
  • How to Bake a Perfect Life (Barbara O'Neal)*
  • Turquoise (Marilyn Griffin)*
  • Second Time Around (Beth Kendrick)*

Of those books, the last four are starred because they were also part of my empty shelf challenge.

I'm currently reading the Neil Patrick Harris autobiography and I need to read this month's book club selection, One Good Dog by Susan Wilson. We're working on a BINGO challenge this year.


Spiritual
I have not been very good at doing my study first. I've been lazy, wanting to sleep as long as possible before getting out of bed. Likely from the last year of busyness. This is the last week of the current Bible study and then I'll get a couple of weeks off before we tackle a shorter study on Gideon.

Prayer
My mother-in-law, Bonnie, is in the hospital. She went in on Thursday evening and is struggling with fluids, heart  and kidney issues. She is in her 80s and a lovely, loving woman. My husband and his oldest brother are the children still in the area so they have been with her and Rob's dad, Raye, over the last few days. They have had conversations with the doctors on prognosis and treatment, with each other on their parents and with their spouses on the difficulty of all of this.

My sister-in-law is likely to come out to stay with them once Bonnie is stable enough to move home. Raye and Bonnie had been making adjustments for their age and abilities, equipment in the bathroom, Meals on Wheels deliveries, having their sons come over to do the yard and household chores. But this event takes it into a new place, one where we have to seriously consider one without the other and the care of this remaining parent.

When I asked Rob how his mom was doing, he said she was doing well. She's calm, reading her books and likely still having the quiet life she had before, just in a different setting. She did talk to Rob about Lily, her cat, wanting us to take Lily in when Bonnie can no longer care for her. It feels like she is preparing for her time to come to an end, as gently as she can with her children. But this is my take based on Rob's reports to me and how he appears to be handling it.

I'll be able to see her today when we go down (school and work has kept me busy when he would go). I guess I'll see for myself how she is doing. I am praying for peace for us all through this.