3
Day 19: I made progress on a jacket that I’m knitting — the only time I had for this was during the homework hour, when I am effectively chained to the table goading Paul to complete his homework. I also went to my watercolor class last night — we’re worknig on color theory and I spent a long time playing with shades of olive gray.
Day 20: Maggie was coloring and stamping things, so I doodled. If you haven’t seen Taro Gomi’s coloring books, you should search them out. Paul and Maggie have three of them — I seem to be the only one who really likes to color/doodle in them. Eighteen faces — that was sort of a challenge.
Days 19 & 20. Done and done (although I’m stretching it.)
5
It’s either our backyard or upside-down lungs…
0
Well. I haven’t posted for umm…three (and a half) days. Which isn’t to say that I didn’t make anything during that time — I just haven’t had time to post. So here now, a recap of days 15, 16, and 17:
Day 15: No-bake cookies (you know — the ones with chocolate, peanut butter and oats). I hosted our local monthly arts & crafts group (actually a beard operation for people that want to hang out and drink while knitting or painting) — we all bring a liquid or solid treat and our projects. Being host, I had both liquid (red wine, Jack Daniels) and solid (the afore-mentioned no-bakes.) Oh, and I knitted for three hours, which counts for something…
Day 16: Red lentil stew, transformed into a topping for bruschetta; roasted chickpeas with toasted pitas, tahini & yogurt, parsley and mint; mexican chocolate rice pudding and cinnamon sweetened tofu. We hosted our monthly potluck group — we’re the weirdo vegs and seem to provide the only vegetable dishes at these things. (Really, every other offering had meat, seafood, eggs or cheese.) BTW, the rice pudding and sweetened tofu makes a FANTASTIC breakfast.
Day 17: What did I do? Hmmm…. Oh yeah, I knit while Maggie took a (much-needed) bath. She stayed in until she achieved prune status, so we’ll say 20 minutes. Give or take. She is, after all, only three and her fingers are tiny.
So that’s that. Days 15-17 done and done. I will say that letting the posts pile up like this is a bad, bad idea. I don’t intend to do it again. Now to figure out what to do for Day 18 (already half over…)
2
I have **sort of** fallen into my husband’s family’s habit of taking a rather cynical view of most holidays — we aren’t supposed to really do Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day… We do do Halloween (tolerated but not encouraged), Thanksgiving — for the food (encouraged), and Christmas — for the presents (encouraged, although children really don’t really need so many toys), but we aren’t supposed to overdo. I grew up with pretty much the antithesis of this approach — we overdo with great abandon. I come from a highly emotional (and demonstrative) family, and my dad was in store design for many years at some of the great old stores, so decor was always important. We did holidays. We overdid holidays. Needless to say, each holiday I struggle to avoid going overboard. I rarely succeed.
This Valentine’s Day — like every other Valentine’s Day — we agreed not to do anything. I — apparently — lied. There are decorations. There are presents. There is dinner. There is desert. So sue me. I’m happy.
Day 14. Done and done.
4
Let’s get in the car and go. Now.
Day 13. Done and done.
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This is actually for Day 12… I made the tempeh-avocado sushi and the roasted butternut squash-pumkin seed spring rolls from Veganomicon for dinner last night. Definitely more than an hour (and sooooo much clean-up) but very yummy and well worth the effort. Desert, on the other hand, was a total disaster — no one would take more than the smallest taste, make a grimace and decline any further interaction with that weird grey gloop. I made a coconut-banana pudding from another vegan cookbook and it’s AWFUL! Should have known better…the other thing that I made from the same cookbook was not good either. I’m going to have to (over)compensate with vegan cupcakes or no-bake cookies (my two standby deserts…)
Day 12, done and done. On to Day 13…
1
6
I am just learning about watercolor work, and my first assignment was to make a color chart using the watercolors that I have. Thing I learned from this lesson? You don’t need much water. Or color. I had a lot of extra color left over and, not wanting to waste it (and itching to experiment with a really beautiful new brush), I spent some time making swirls… It became apparent (to me at least) that the swirls were actually some sort of forest, and that the forest required some small children. Not sure if they’re in it or just looking at it. In fact, I’m not at all sure what this painting means. Does it have to mean anything? Had fun doing it though… (Oh, and I made a really yummy tofu scramble while I was at it.)
Day 10. Done and done.
3
Today I did not make the bed. Which enabled our cat to find the exact perfect spot on which to become as much a circle as she possibly could. Which enabled me to take this cool photo. Tabitha has been this way for hours now. I really like the way her pattern and position work with the duvet cover. I guess you could say that I made the opportunity for this shot… But I am going to make that bed. Sometime.
A stretch, but I’m counting this photo. Here’s hoping that I actually get some time (more than seven minutes) to myslef tomorrow…
Day 9. Done and done.
1
Did you know that you can’t upload photos from an iPhone to Thing-a-Day? Really. It’s true. (Of course, it’s possible that you can do this, and I haven’t figured it our yet…)
So I did make a thing yesterday, I just didn’t chronicle it. And that got me started thinking about all the things I make every day without quantification — multiple meals (with various requirements); beds; clean places, clothes and small people; fairy tale characters, imaginary lands; sense from nonsense … I don’t usually make (or do) much for myself. And far from a pity party — I think making other peoples’ lives a little better is a great thing. And I feel really fortunate to have the ability to do that so many times every day.
That reads a lot mushier than I intended it, but it is the truth.
Day 8. Done and done.
0
Okay, I understand that, technically, all projects for Thing a Day should take 20-60 minutes to complete. But that means that the most relaxing thing that I do — knitting — is flat out. Knitting is also something to do during my son’s interminable homework sessions — it keeps me from inadvertantly teaching him all sorts of expletives. And so, today I chose knitting as my project. I have had this yarn for over a year, and it’s been the start of at least four different sweaters, each ripped out for all sorts of reasons. Right now, it’s becoming a jacket. The best part of the current pattern? Straight knitting, which means that I don’t have to concentrate too hard, so I keep those expletives to myself!
Day 7. Done and done.
4
Somehow between last night, when Maggie was obsessed with princess fairy butterflies (she’s worn a tutu and wings for FIVE days), and this morning, Maggie has switched her affections over to Little Red Riding Hood. She must be addressed as Little Red Riding Hood and she would only eat a Little Red Riding Hood breakfast (Did you know that Little Red Riding Hood was a fan of Strawberry Shredded Wheat and banana smoothies? True!) After breakfast, LRRH and I were coloring and I just kept going. Now my drawing/coloring hangs next to LRRH’s bed, which only last night was the Fairy Princess Butterfly cave.
Day 6. Done and done.
3
Both my parents are artists. My mom does…well, you name it, she does it. Very, very, very well. And if she doesn’t know how to do it, she learns. Quickly. And does that new thing very, very, very well. My dad is a fantastic watercolorist. Needless to say, I’ve inherited some of their abilities (first child aiming to please parents syndrome, anyone?) but I’ve always been thoroughly intimidated by watercolors. This being my year of change, I’ve started taking classes from a local teacher. My parents are coming to visit in just a few weeks…hopefully I won’t be afraid of showing them my work.
Day 5. Done and done.
6
Today’s project — recycling. I had a sweater that I loved. Unfortunately, it loved coffee stains, and so our love had to end. Seemed wasteful to just toss it, so… voila! A recycled sweater hat for Mag. I even made a fancy flower on top — fancy because it has pink sequins (recycled from another old sweater) masquerading as the middle of the flower.
Day 4. Done and done.
1
So we have friends that come to our house for the SuperBowl each year. (They are truly patient, brave people, as little viewing occurs since two kids are spinning in front of the tv. We are live birth control. It’s a gift.)
Anyway, I made vegan sliders with carmelized onions, fruit salad, and spicy fries. Desert is chocolate covered pretzels and a sweet tofu dip for apples. Well, even if we kill any romantic inclinations and the SuperBowl is a bust, at least we had a really yummy dinner…
Day 3. Done and done.
0
Maggie needed a new fairy princess necklace (fairy princesses, you know, need a constant supply of such things.) I was happy to oblige. (Incidentally, the green jumper thing that appears to be a vest is actually a dress that I knit for her when she was born. It has been remarkably well-used.)
Day 2. Done and done.
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Our local school was closed for…rain. In truth, the school was scheduled for a half day, but with a two-hour delay due to rain, school officials elected to — wait for it — cancel. The whole day. Due. To. Rain. My initial project idea (which will be used next week) was changed and I made a bookmark. So now, unlike my local elected officials (and those to whom money is paid for private school tuition), I will be a good citizen. I will not bend pages in library books.
Done and done.
0
So tomorrow begins our big challenge. I’m thinking about what to do for our first big day…no-bake cookies? No, only one kid will be home tomorrow, so someone else (me) would be eating them… Knitting? No — I’ve just started a new project that definitely does not qualify for thing-a-day (but maybe thing-a-season)… Oooo, I just figured out what I’m going to do! You’ll need to wait until tomorrow to find out. In the meantime, you can visit my regular blog (www.pricklygirl.com) to see my work.
Until tomorrow…
Day 19: I made progress on a jacket that I’m knitting — the only time I had for this was during the homework hour, when I am effectively chained to the table goading Paul to complete his homework. I also went to my watercolor class last night — we’re worknig on color theory and I spent a long time playing with shades of olive gray.
Day 20: Maggie was coloring and stamping things, so I doodled. If you haven’t seen Taro Gomi’s coloring books, you should search them out. Paul and Maggie have three of them — I seem to be the only one who really likes to color/doodle in them. Eighteen faces — that was sort of a challenge.
