Yarn Along with Edith

Hello again! This is Edith and I'm so excited to be here with you, joining my friend Ginny for this week's Yarn Along. I thoroughly enjoyed our time together for needle and thREAD and am just plain giddy about turning our conversation to knitting. I do so love knitting!

Allow me to begin with a single name:

Elizabeth Zimmerman

A legend, that one. Don't you just love her?

I do. Not only because she is, like me, a quirky continental knitter. (You've read the story of her governess "correcting" the English-style knitting she learned from her mother? Apparently continental knitting had been all but abandoned in England during World War II due to its association with Germany. Ah, the politics of knitting!) No, it's not simply common technique behind my fondness. There's a true genius about Elizabeth Zimmerman and what I adore most is her brilliant humor. 

Really, you must pick up a copy of one of her books. Knitter's Almanac? Knitting Without Tears? Or how about a volume of her columns, The Opinionated Knitter? Whether or not you venture to recreate the patterns she "unvented," you'll love her wit. 

Allow me to tempt you with her instructions for knitting a ribbed turtleneck:

Pick up a multiple of 4 stitches around the neck and work in knit-two, purl-two ribbing until you are sick of it.

She's charming. And truly, she revolutionized knitting. Before the days of Ravelry's dizzying database of detailed patterns, knitters simply knew how to use a system of proportions to create garments. Elizabeth Zimmerman was the first to break down that mysterious knowledge. She unlocked the secret for people like me, those of us who are rather fond of following recipes. 

So I'm slowly branching out these days, trying to learn the logic of knitting. But not wanting to venture too far, too soon into uncharted percentage systems, I casted on a project based on Elizabeth Zimmerman's legendary February Baby Sweater, just to get a feel for her designs. Most likely you've heard of it, the February Lady Sweater? It's an adult-sized version of the baby cardigan adapted by Pamela Wynne, conveniently written in the style of a modern pattern. 

So far I'm loving it.

I'm knitting my February Lady in an autumnal palette, hues that remind me of October. I suppose I'm a bit off the almanac on that one, so let's just say I'm knitting an October Lady Sweater, shall we? (You can find my progress and notes here on my new Ravelry page.)

I chose a hand-dyed merino wool by the Chilean artisans of Araucania. This aran weight yarn is one of their Toconao Multy variations. It captures autumn, my favorite season. 

(And I just noticed upon uploading the photo above that my sweater coordinates perfectly with my tote. Funny. Didn't plan that one.)

I've only just finished the yoke and separated for the sleeves, but I can already tell you how much I love Elizabeth Zimmerman's gull lace pattern. Easy to memorize, easy to correct when your scooting infant pulls up on your chair and rips your work right out of your hands and hundreds of stitches fall off the ends of your needles. No use crying over dropped stitches with this pattern.

But I didn't have to work through the lace section to fall in love. My 14 year old daugther, Marianne, has her own February Lady Sweater in the works and is a bit further along than me. She's knitting hers in Spud and Chloe Sweater Yarn. She says it's a dream to work with.

(Isn't her tote adorable? Last week's sewing lesson. And I just noticed upon uploading the photo how perfectly her project coordinates with her tote. Strange.)

Upon writing that last sentence, I promptly left my keyboard to inspect my eldest daughter's tote. And yes, it too matches her project.

Oh my!

Eleanor is knitting Hannah Fettig's Contended Cardi in Blue Sky Alpaca Worsted Hand Dyes. She asked for the yarn for her 17th birthday. That cardigan calls for about a hundred thousand yards of alpaca. I told her that her father and I could A) send her to college or B) buy her that yarn. 

She chose the yarn, smart girl.

Of course, I'm only joking. We'll still send her to college. She just better wear that sweater every single day of it!

Enough about yarn, let's talk reading. My matchy-matchy girls and I are devouring the Bronte sisters and have been thoroughly entertained...in a dark, depressive sort of way. Today we're listening to the last 30 minutes of Wuthering Heights on Audible. Of course, we could just read aloud together, as we have done for years, but we've recently transitioned to audiobooks and called it a daily knit-a-long.

Knitting and British ghost stories. It doesn't get much better than that, now does it?

One evening after our listening, we put the littles to bed and watched the movie version, the newer production with Ralph Feinnes as Heathcliff. (Go ahead, watch the trailer.)

Mr. Feinnes is wonderful, as usual, but oddly cast, I must say. Ralph Fiennes as a strapping, dark-toned gypsy? He's too refined, too slight of build, the girls and I said. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find the part of Nelly Dean played by Janet McTeer, the talented woman who read the parts narrated by Nelly on the audio version we've been enjoying. She's absolutely wonderful. 

Really, you should download the story and listen. I promise, it'll go great with your knitting. 

Knit on with confidence and hope, through all crises.

-Elizabeth Zimmerman

Join Ginny for more knitting and reading. 

The Undivided Heart (Take Two)

Last week, I read Chapter 3 of The Mission of Motherhood. I read it and prayed about it and read it again and prayed some more. Then, I carefully constructed a blog post. Most of the time, when I write, my fingers fly and it all gets onto the screen quickly. I labored over that post. Then, I decided to give Typepad's new picture editor feature a whirl. I made a careless mistake and <poof!> there went the post.

Patrick and Mary Beth tried to help me to try to recover it. It was long gone. Over the next couple of days, I had heart-to-heart talks with three dear friends. What I learned is that some things are better pondered in one's own heart, whispered to a trusted friend, and not broadcast on the internet. In the end, I'm glad for the process of writing that post. I'm glad I could recount it in detail for my friends. I'm glad they lingered long to listen and to offer wise counsel. And, ultimately, I'm glad the post disappeared. 

My first friend pointed out that it might not be such a good idea to make longterm decisions in the midst of an intrusive remodeling project, several kid emergencies, an extended Daddy trip to Florida, and some health issues of my own. She reminded me that my introverted soul was starved. No kidding! I had had no time without strangers in my house and several children in my bed for weeks. I was desperate for silence. Also, my rhythm was rocked and the time I'd carefully carved to write without taking anything from my family had dissipated when Stephen hurt himself and I no longer had to sit for two hours three times a week while he practiced. Perhaps because fatigue was having its way with me; all I could hear were the voices saying this wasn't a real mission anyway. These weren't anything more than first world frivolties. My friend, who knows and understands the mission I want to embrace--both in my home and in the blogging world--helped me to see my blog through a new lens, both figuratively and literally. She had some tangible solutions to things I saw as insurmountable obstacles. She's promised to nudge me along the learning curve. I look forward to putting those ideas in motion.

The second friend listened long. I took the phone with me and talked and talked as I walked downtown McLean on a sunny late afternoon. Nick kicked the soccer ball around and my friend Edith and I kicked around some ideas. She helped my to see how to guard my heart, to ensure that it was undivided, even as I sought to have meaningful, God-honoring relationships both in my home and beyond my own four walls. She pointed out that long ago God had planted a seed in my marriage--one that we were certain was a call to a big family and home education.  At the time, that seemed like a big, bold mission. It still is a big, bold mission.

Then, Edith had another idea that gave me new energy and enthusiasm. She said she really enjoyed visiting with you all last week during needle & thREAD and she'd like to come back and share more sewing and some of her knitting, too. I'm so, so happy to welcome her here. I think that as I labor in my home, at my learning table, and in this virtual living room, it is good to have co-laborers who are similarly called, people who can remind me that God wants me here and challenge me to do His will wholeheartedly. 

Then, I talked to Megan. Megan has been entrusted with my heart during times in my life when it has been at its most vulnerable. And she has entrusted me with hers. On Karoline's birthday, Megan treated us to tea. I literally had not slept in over 48 hours. Life had been a blur of Spanish-speaking contractors, college applications, angry teenagers, damaged kitchen walls, crooked countertops, and hour and hours of college math. I was totally exhausted, yet the voice in my head kept saying, "You aren't doing enough. You just stay here trying to bless the abundantly blessed and still you falter all the time."

Megan whisked us into a teatime fairy tale and made the birthday so very memorable. Once, nine years ago, while looking adoringly at his wife, Megan's husband Scott said, "She has a way of making everything more beautiful, doesn't she?" She does. And I count Megan among my dearest blessings. Megan and I have been walking the Alphabet Path with our girls this year. She's all in for sharing pictures and recipes for every letter of the alphabet with you. I know Megan; beauty will follow. And there is value in beauty.

Finally, after hearing me count my failures aloud one time too many, my husband put me in the car on Saturday and drove west into my beloved Blue Ridge mountains. The kids and I introduced him to Rappahanock Cellars and he and I had big, big talk. I was reminded that ever since I was a little girl, God has called me to wholehearted motherhood and to homemaking. And ever since I was a little girl, I have wanted to write. Mike seemed at once surprised and dismayed to learn how close I'd come to ceasing to write (here and elsewhere) without really talking it through with him. All executive management, he jumped in with some ideas for how to make it work better, without taking anything from our home. He also pointed out that mission looks different in the first world. In some ways, it needs to be quiet; it must be almost secret.  It's the quiet work of mercy towards our neighbors. It is still God's work. And it still has value.

All in all, I begin this week more peaceful than I've been in quite sometime. There are some changes planned and they are all good. I'm only through Chapter 3 of the book and I feel like the fruits are abundant! Mostly, I've learned well that one way a woman lives with an undivided heart for her family is to entrust that heart to friends who know and understand how dear the mission is to her. We need good friends. Other women can affirm for us that the mostly hidden work in our homes is valuable, necessary, and lifegiving. They can challenge us to live authentic lives as wives and mothers first. They can lift us when we stumble and they can celebrate the every day. This life--large families, home education, wholehearted homemaking--it's a life apart, even when it's in the midst of ordinary suburbia. We are a missionary order of the suburban kind; aprons are our habits.

Are you thinking about the mission of motherhood, too? I'm going to join The Nester for 31 Days. I'm going to host a 31 day "retreat"here  to remind myself (and anyone who wants to come along) of the mission of motherhood and matrimony. If you want to do your own 31 Days on anything you choose, head here and join! If you want to retreat from the noise of the 'net for a month and focus your own sweet home and family, grab a “Remind Myself of the Mission” button and curl up with a candle, your Bible, and this good book! Let me know your thoughts below. We can help each other hear His mission. You can add a Remind Myself button by cutting and pasting the code below.

<a href="http://ebeth.typepad.com/reallearning/2012/09/31-days-to-remind-myself-of-the-mission.html" _mce_href="http://ebeth.typepad.com/reallearning/2012/09/31-days-to-remind-myself-of-the-mission.html"><img src="http://ebeth.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c543553ef017c323f2b90970b-pi" _mce_src="http://ebeth.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c543553ef017c323f2b90970b-pi"width="125"height="125"border="0" alt="31 days Misson"/></a>

Click here for the whole series.

Happy Birthday to my Best Friend

~guest post by Patrick

In my life, I have had, and lost, many friends. Friends come and go and that's just life. What does not come and go is family. For better or for worse, you are stuck with your family. I am a firm believer that the people with whom you surround yourself ultimately will shape you as a person. I am certain that in my life my family has shaped me as a person and inside my family no person has been closer to me than my oldest sister, Mary Beth.

{Mom note: Patrick's arm is wrapped in a huge cast. He had surgery two days before. Apparently, this injury-for-birthdays tradition dates way back.}

Now make no mistake, my oldest sister is still my younger sister and no matter how old and mature she gets, she will always be little to me. There is a sort of iconic photo in our house that shows me with Bee and Mom, just hanging out on a hospital bed the day she was born. Now I don't remember that day, but from the look on my face, I don't think I was too fond of the idea of losing the title of "family baby." And while I may not remember that moment, I do remember my relationship with Bee from a very young age pretty vividly.

    I can remember playing with her and I can remember when "playing" turned to "hanging out" that turned to "chillin'.." In the "playing" days, I thought I could turn Bee into a world class soccer player. That was dream was thwarted pretty quickly when she broke a bone at age 5 and decided she would never play a contact sport again. From the "hanging out" days, I can remember sitting on Bee's bed, talking about anything and everything that came to mind-- she is a great listener and I think anyone who knows me knows that I have opinions to be heard. As for the 'chillin' days, well, they've had their ups and downs. Life has happened as we have grown up; there have been challenges that didn't exist as little kids. But even through the ups and downs, Bee is still there, my right-hand-chic and I am positive that the love and friendship is as strong as ever. 

Bee is turning 16 today. Whoa. One thing I know about 16-year-old girls is that boys are attracted to them. Through my own ignorance I guess I overlooked this little fact? Needless to say, when the thought of Bee and boys comes to mind, uh, it kind of freaks me out... Everyone knows that dads and brothers are protective of their ladies-- poor Bee, she is going to have more protection than the pope. We always joke that Bee can't start dating until she is 40. This is clearly just silliness, Bee, if you're reading this, I say you can start at 35.

All jokes aside, I am proud to call Bee my best friend and my sister. I am sure that as we grow, neither of these titles will change. Bee is as loyal as they come. I honestly don't know where I would be without her constant love and support and I am lucky and blessed to have a person as amazing as Bee in my life.

Happy Birthday, Bee!

{We struggled with pictures here. Now the secret is out: Mary Beth is the resident photographer and we can barely blog without her help.}

Cutest Birthday Card Ever

*Love you, Bee. You've turned me into a great speller and you've teached me lots of things. Love, Kari

Monday Morning Almanac

I find myself:

::noticing God's glory

We took a drive to Front Royal on Saturday. As always, the lovely Blue Ridge delivered a glorious autumn show. Have I ever mentioned how much I love living in Virginia? Oh, well, maybe a few times;-).

::listening to 

Amy Grant. We've grown up together. 

{Nicky's prized possession, relocated to a new room.}

::clothing myself in 

Khaki pants, a long-sleeved t-shirt, a blue denim jacket rolled at the cuffs, and a handmade Anna Maria Horner voile scarf.

::talking with my children about these books

Pinkalicious. The littlest in this house pulls rank now and then (she outranks us all) and everyone does what she says. Her room is now cotton-candy pink, with one purple wall to appease Karoline. 

::thinking and thinking

About my mission. I clearly have not posted 31 days in a row, but I am reaping in a big way from this study. I'll update you later today. I'm amazed and grateful for the wild ride God has taken along with me as I look anew at vocation. While I'm 22 days into the prayer and meditation, I've only completed 10 posts. I promise I'll finish the whole 31 posts.  In time. Thanks for your patience.

{my view when I open my eyes in the morning}

::pondering prayerfully

“My present trial seems to me a somewhat painful one, and I have the humiliation of knowing how badly I bore it at first. I now want to accept and to carry this little cross joyfully, to carry it silently, with a smile in my heart and on my lips, in union with the Cross of Christ. My God, blessed be Thou; accept from me each day the embarrassment, inconvenience, and pain this misery causes me. May it become a prayer and an act of reparation." ~Elisabeth Leseur

::carefully cultivating rhythm

The last few weeks, rhythm was squashed into oblivion. We had birthday week, two orthopedic emergencies, a totalled car (unrelated to either orthopedic issue), Mike traveling, and a house full of contractors all day, every day, for two weeks. I was rocked to my introverted core. This morning, everyone is walking without a limp, my house is squeaky clean, I have dinner planned, and we will have a peaceful, planned day. God willing. Please, God, be willing!

::creating by hand

Drapery fabric is on the way! We're going to begin as soon as it gets here. In the meantime, I'm knitting away (very slowly) on my California shawl, helping Katie sew a blouse, and committing to getting those blocks finished for the anniversary quilt. Happy, happy, happy to knit and sew! I recognize how important these handworks are to me and how necessary it is that I plan time for them. 

{old curtains, new spot for them}

::learning lessons in

Oh, those Mama lessons! What a school for souls this vocation is! I'm learning that I still have much to learn. I messed up bigtime during birthday week and completely missed communicating in the love language of one of my children. I'm not sure either of us will ever fully recover. I'm still gulping the lump in my throat

::encouraging learning 

It's long been known to me that children learn at their own pace. That's one of the reasons we chose to homeschool. Friends, at long last, my most challenging student of all is cranking along and "getting" math. This means I am unexpectedly spending hours a day sitting next to him, working through college math, but I'll take it!

And I think that purgatory might be a place where one fills in all the teacher/school/counselor/parent forms on the Common App and repeatedly gets the error message every single time she saves. 

::begging prayers

for my peace of heart and others' gentle forgiveness as I try to catch up on things let go during the firestorm of the last couple weeks. I let more than a couple people down and I'm going to need a huge infusion of grace to regain equilibrium.

{the wall still awaits the icons, but we have a little pocket of peace here}

::keeping house

The middle and top floor of my house are perfectly clean. Every nook and cranny, wall and window, drawer and closet. Every flat surface above the floor has a new coat of paint and I so love the colors that surround me. Now, it's time to implement a new chore system, taking into account that in the next few weeks, two of the three big boys will leave our home. Nick and Stephen will go from sharing a room all their lives to each having their own rooms. We did a little switch preemptively. Nicky shares a room with Stephen, but he has always wanted to share a room with Paddy. When we learned he was leaving early for UVa, we moved Nick in with him and Michael in with Stephen. Michael is moving out in early December. This way, Nicky gets his much-adored roommate from now until he goes in January and then every time he comes home from college. It's just weird to think how huge this house is going to seem without them...

I've tried to capture a few images of the new colors, but I haven't gotten the hues true at all. Maybe next time.

 

{so good to have a functioning kitchen again, first thing in the morning}

::crafting in the kitchen 

I'm going back to a solid three week paleo meal plan. I'm really, really happy about this. I see its benefits and I'm committed to making it a habit for the long haul. My kids seem fairly happy with it, too. I think some nearly-paleo chocolate chip cookies helped. Recipes forthcoming. I've been Instagramming pictures of things we all are happy to eat. Follow me there, if you like. I'm heartofmyhome. You can also click on the little button at the top of the righthand column with the camera. This works even if you don't have an Instagram account.

 I registered to begin the Whole30 again. From the beginning of Lent until mid-June, I was following this diet for hypothyroidism, more or less. Then Kristen Kill mentioned to me she was doing Whole 30. They sounded essentially the same and I found a lot of support for the hypothryoid diet on the Whole30 pages, so I did Whole30 in July. I made it to Day 26 and then caved for a grain-free, dairy-free and utterly fabulous cookie. I went Whole 30+ from August 1 until our California trip and then I added wine and a little sushi rice. But I was really vigilant about all else while in California. And I was feeling well and very much seeing a difference.

When I returned home, I messed up bigtime. Birthday week and two weeks of non-functioning kitchen, and I  just didn't have the discipline to withstand either the unpredictable messes and crises or the abundant sugar at hand. I have paid dearly. On a couple days, my joints have hurt so badly, I've struggled to do the simplest things to move about the day. And there have been days my hands were so stiff that the thought of keyboarding anything has brought me to tears. I'm convinced that this way of eating is non-negotiable for me. I started Whole30 all over again. It took a few days to even get to functional again, but the past couple of days have been much better. I'm in for life. I have to be.

::loving the moments

when I have time to talk with my husband.

::giving thanks 

for the good men who have shared my home these last few weeks. They've worked so hard and cared so much about doing an excellent job. Their handiwork blesses us abundantly and we're so grateful to have gotten to know them. 

living the liturgy

Have you heard about the Advent Workshop? Do come hang out with us! Even if you're not local, click over and let me know your favorite Advent resources. I really need your help, y'all.

And...I'm doing a happy dance. Our mission has relocated daily Mass (again, I know). This time, it's five minutes away with no chance of traffic. Happy, happy, happy! This my friends, is truly living liturgy!

 

::planning for the week ahead

Mary Beth will be Sweet Sixteen on Tuesday. While I have a few thoughts in mind for this day, I'm interested to know how you celebrated your sixteenth birthday. Does your family have any traditions for your daughters? Ideas? 

{Mike completely renovated the foyer bathroom. Sarah helped him.}

{my new favorite place to sit}