I Need More Friends Who Blog

OK, the rules as stated to me are:

1. Each player starts by blogging 8 random facts about themselves.
2. At the end of the post, you tag 8 friends and post their names.
3. You leave a comment on the blogs of the aforementioned 8 friends, telling them they've been tagged, and instructing them to read your blog.


Random facts about Sister Madness:

1. I was given the name Sister Madness by La Cabeza Grande.

2. I have visited, driven through, or otherwise been to 32 states and the District of Columbia.

3. My parents have, between them, three marriages and one long term relationship. Through all of that, I have never had a sister, a half-sister, a step-sister, or a pseudo-sister.

4. Of all the children I refer to as nieces and nephews, only three have direct blood relation to me, and they are actually first cousins once removed.

5. I could read at the age of 4. The first book I read by myself was Dr. Seuss's "Hop on Pop."

6. I didn't learn to ride a bike until I was almost 9.

7. I won a prize for "Most Adorable" in the annual Halloween costume contest of the village where we lived when I was 3. I was a yellow gingham sunflower (handmade by Mom, back when she did those things), COMPLETELY adorable, and have spent the last 38 years trying to win the title a second time.

8. I was just puked on by a kid at work for the first time this past Thursday. Considering what I do and where I do it, I'm rather surprised that it took this long.


OK, Missy and Bridget? I don't see that anyone else has tagged you (and if they did, then you haven't posted!), so you're the only two left on my list that I can tag. I'll also mention that Zes has been tagged, and I am anxiously awaiting her post.

The Kraftiness Kontinues

OK, major accomplishment, here!!

Little Alex is due to arrive next week, and I'll be headed to the post office on Saturday with a box containing three of my standard, all cotton poop-n-puke blankets, which I have been making for beloved babies the world over since 1985, and three (Count 'em!! Three!!) little delights for the delicate newborn noggin. Check 'em out!



Counter-clockwise from the upper right, the first is the previously blogged first foray with circular needles, with a pompom added for a little fun and flair. It is completely precious, but I was concerned that, even for the most newly-arrived melon, it would be a wee bit wee. So, I took another stab at it, doing complete and utter "whim-knitting" for the second go-round. And around I went, to the tune of 96 stitches per, in a 5 knit-1 purl pattern. For Lucky Number Three, I found some larger needles on sale and undertook Vintage Knits' Rolled Brim Baby Hat with Top Knot. All told, I ended up with three hats that appear to be all of varying sizes, so here's hoping that at least one of them will work for the little bugger!

And I got 'em all done before the baby arrived!! Go, me!

Mr. DeMille...

So, I come back to the office around lunchtime today, minding my own business, when I see there's a message on my phone. I've got a few minutes before my next meeting, so I check the voicemail. It's a woman from the Marketing/PR department of the hospital...

I took a class a couple weeks ago from a local magician/comedian who wanted to teach interested hospital employees a few basic tricks, which we could use to break the ice and connect with kids who are feeling anxious about being at the hospital. Since Child Life is all about distractions and helping kids to engage their own inherent coping skills, many of us have signed up for the class, but it just so happened that my class was the very first one.

It seems that the local paper has gotten wind of what's going on, and wants to do a story on it. They are going to profile the guy teaching the class, and also want to interview somebody who has taken the class and can put the value of it into everyday use. The Marketing/PR lady called my director, who pointed her my way. Said director then advised me that I should "be prepared for pictures..."

ACK!!! There's essentially no wiggle room in my budget these days, and I need an emergency eyebrow wax! Dammit!!

Sister M's Krafty Korner

I don't know what hit me this particular week... but I'm somehow channeling all of my junior high school home ec classes. It started, I guess, because I needed to fix a pair of pants for work. The seam was coming loose, and, well... a blowout in a room full of preschoolers would probably be a bad thing. So, I got the sewing machine out.

Once it was out and set up, I decided to tackle the under-sink curtains for my half bathroom. I'd bought the material not long after moving in here, and it has just sat for months. Meanwhile, the space under the sink has been useful for storage, but stuff has sort of piled up under there, and it's really not much to look at. So, a bit of ironing, a few pins, some meticulous measuring, and some simple straight line sewing, and voila! Now the bath is festive and fashionable!



(The hand towels will need to be replaced with some fingertip towels that match the color scheme a bit better, but... all in due time!)

Next, I decided to make another small object for baby Alex, who will be arriving at the end of the month. This is strictly "on a whim" knitting, and I'm totally making it up as I go along, but I'll be sure to take a snap and post before I send it off. The purple fingerless gloves are still a work in progress as well, but I think I was in need of something I could start and finish quickly in order to recharge my juices for tackling them again.

Stay tuned!! More krafty stuff to kome!