Fiber

Doesn't it make you want to snuggle?

These are a couple of "mystery photos" of two knitting projects in the works. Can't show you more, in case they are gifted later...

Twiddle. Twiddle. Twiddle.

Hear that? It's the sound of my thumbs. A short list of things I've been doing to keep from calling my doctor and requesting an IV of Pitocin:

1. Alphabetically re-arranged my spice jars.
2. Organized address labels for the birth announcements of a child who hasn't been born.
3. Spent ONE HOUR curling my hair with a curling iron.
4. Three days ago, I started watching an old TV series on DVD....I'm now on Season 3.
6. Went shopping for a diaper bag. That is, another diaper bag.
7. Have spent a good deal of time wondering why doctors feel the need to give you an exact due date. Really, they should say, "You're due some time in August. Or September. And, truthfully, October isn't out of the question."

I'm open to more creative ways to pass the time, should you choose to comment. And the firmly your tongue is planted in your cheek, the better. I must warn you, however, that I will drop-kick anyone commenting in the realm of, "enjoy it while it lasts." You should know how I feel about statements such as these, by now.

Have a nice day.

Just the Two of Us

The phrase, "my family," is about to change.

But before it does, I'm going to take a short trip down memory lane. This post is dedicated to my husband...my family. 

Engaged!: July 2004. It was a miraculous thing that you managed to surprise me with a proposal--considering we had already booked the hall and I already

 had my wedding dress! A perfect proposal and a perfect weekend at Stony Pointe.

Our first trip overseas: Paris: Summer 

2004. I remember the smallest room ever 

created. Getting to the top of the Eiffel Tower at midnight. You scamming a ride off the "cab driver" on the way home. Horrible luck finding good food. Proposing back to you on the bridge. Shoe shopping (still have 'em--though they might not fit). Then, on to London. We were so pleasantly surprised by this city, we stayed an extra day! I remember the largest room ever created...and that awesome towel warmer on the back of the bathroom door. We ate pasties galore, saw some theatre, got stung by a bee, visited Sherlock Holmes, rode the Tube...and the escalators. 

Our Wedding: July 2005. Surrounded by family and friends, in 100 degree heat, it was a day and night to remember. Rabbi T, champagne in the classic car, speaker on fire, folk dancing.

The Honeymoon: St. Lucia (aka The Most Beautiful Island on Earth). Highlights include our private jeep tour with the banana guy, THE MOTHS, champagne on the beach, pool and p-corn and Dirty Bananas (it's a blended beverage).

And then, there were three. In January, 2006, we adopted our little Oliver, deemed by others as our "practice baby." I was so thrilled to watch you become a bit of a dad, for the first time. Now, you are most certainly his best buddy.

Maui: Summer, 2006. Since becoming pregnant, I often marvel at how one's outlook on life (read: safety) changes. I'm not entirely sure I'd be willing to get back in this helicopter with Rent-A-Pilot again. Ironically, you were the nervous one!

Niagara Falls: December, 2006. 

We took this teeny, tiny vacation to spend a little time together (sans dog, thank you Mimi) in the freezing cold. We ended up stumbling upon great vineyards and the adorable town of Niagra-on-the-Lake. 

Australia/New Zealand: Summer, 2007. Koalas, Kangas, and Crocs...oh, my! Among my favorite memories: driving on the other side of the road, chasing down the hubcap, sulfur lingering in the laundry, sushi, snorkeling, shark exhibit, the little penguin wild goose chase, Te Puia, rolling around in the mud, sheep, our own private restaurant in Rotorua. 

Those are the biggies...though we have also traveled to Spring Training, Sedona, San Fran, NYC (times three). I have loved having you to myself for three years, but I'm ready for "our family" to morph into four. Come out, come out, wherever you are, Baby Rose!

Back to School

Even though I won't be headed back to school this year, there are certain things I will be sad to miss.

Most of my teacher friends think I'm nuts, but there is a certain charm and magic about the beginning of a school year.

1. It's clean!
If you've never worked in a school, one of the things you wouldn't know is just how dirty those buildings get during the year. Imagine nine months of dust collecting under the lip of your bookshelves. Ick.

2. New supplies.
There truly is nothing like a new notebook. It's not creased, the spiral is still pristine, it doesn't have 30 games of MASH on the inside, the cover is still a little slippery...the only thing that tops it is a new collection of freshly sharpened #2 pencils.

3. New class lists.
For a "specials" teacher like myself, we don't always (or often) have the benefit of a fresh batch students each year. But there is something about the mixing and matching of "old" students to create "new" classes that can transform children.

4. New shoes.
In my house, the start of a new school year meant a trip to Buster Brown, where you were fitted for shoes by an Actual Shoe Salesman. He had that funny gadget that measured your feet, I'm pretty sure there were balloons (or was it candy?) on the way out, and even though those shiny new shoes hurt like nobody's business for the first week, you could rest assured that they'd last you the whole year--whether you like it or not.

5. New attitudes.
I can tell you from a teacher's perspective that there is a really good reason why (most) schools aren't in session during the summer. It is truly rejuvenating to have that many weeks away from the three Rs--and from children to whom you did not give birth.

And you? Share your favorite memory of going back to school!

Nursery Tour

For those of you who haven't been able to see the nursery in person, here's a little virtual tour. Props to Auntie Abigail, who designed and painted.

Subscribing to this Blog (automatic updates)

Some help, for those who'd like it.

There are three ways (ok, more than that...but I'll help you with three) to get automatic updates to our blog.

1. If you're among the first EIGHT people to email me (hannahrae at yahoo dot com), I can put you on a list generated by Blogger, who hosts this site, and they will email you every time there is a new post. They only allow me to put 10 people on the list, though, and I've already got two (Mom and Esther, you're already added). HOWEVER, the new post will be emailed to you in plain text. You will have to visit the site directly (there should be a link at the bottom of the email) to see it in its intended format.

2. Subscribe using the gadget in the toolbar to the RIGHT of this post. It will say "Subscribe to." If you select "Posts," you will see a few options. If, for example, you have a Google account (soandso@google.com) or Yahoo account (soandso@yahoo.com), you can select this option. What it will do is add a section to your home email page that will update you when changes are made.

3. Subscribe using "Bloglines." You can find this option in the same place as #2 above, but only choose this option if you're feeling a little tech savvy. Alternatively, you can visit www.bloglines.com directly. Basically, you will set up an account with Bloglines and you can add all the blogs you regularly check. For example, I regularly read 5 blogs. Because I have subscribed to them through Bloglines, I now only have to visit one website to get all my updates.
a) Go to the website
b) Set up an account
c) Click the "feeds" tab in top left corner
d) Click "add"
e) Find the field labeled "Blog or Feed URL" and type in the website you want to add (IE: www.handbrosegarden.blogspot.com)
f) Click "subscribe"
g) It takes you to a screen with "Available Feeds."
h) Check the most recent feed (usually at the top), scroll to the bottom of the page, and click "Subscribe."
i) NOW...to check all your blogs at the same time, add Bloglines to your list of bookmarks. When you click the bookmark tab, it will take you to the Bloglines main page. When you get there, click "Feeds." All your blogs will be listed. The ones in bold have new content on the pages. When you click the link, it will show you the title(s) of new posts you haven't yet read. Click on the title of the post, and it takes you directly to the blog.

WHEW. Again, only use #3 if you would like to subscribe to several different blogs.

Don't forget, you can post comments on our blog any time you like, even if you don't wish to set up a Google/Blogger account. You can post under the "Anonymous" option.

I hope this was helpful! Post a question, if you have any, and I'll try to help.

Baby Fruit Hats

I think this is what they call "nesting."

So, I took up knitting about a year ago with the specific intention of making these hats one day. Thanks to Georg, my awesome knitting instructor/therapist/art teacher at my school, I've produced two strawberries and this pumpkin, in addition to a few other projects. We'll see if I can get Baby Rose to model the hats one day.

Lake Geneva

We like to refer to this as our first "family trip." Indeed, it's the first time we've taken Oliver with us on vacation, and Baby Rose (in utero) was there, too. (Boy, was he ever! Kid never stops moving...)



We found this cute (ish) Bed and Breakfast that is dog friendly, and our room came with it's own balcony and dog gate, and provided a private entrance into the inn.



We also encouraged--and sometimes forced--little Oliver to go for a swim. Turns out, he loves the water and took every opportunity possible to get in it...short of jumping off our pier on his own.

Another highlight of the trip was finding a great art store with original oil paintings for dirt cheap. We scored two for the house, in our constant quest toward The Perfect Home.

Click here to see more pictures!

HEY!

Just wanted to get your attention. Welcome to the first post from "The Rose Garden!"

Having stalked some of my friends for years on their blogs, there is a certain amount of pressure to write brilliant posts, just like theirs. Well....don't hold your breath.

At the moment, the angle of The Rose Garden is simply to provide a way for our little (tiny) family to connect with our much larger family and friends. Stay tuned for pictures, video clips, and bits of this and that from our daily lives.

For those of you new to the blogging world (and I, myself, am a beginner), there are some "rules" to follow. Rule #1: If you choose to comment, please do not refer to any pictured children by name. Instead, use the first initial, or a code name of sorts. This is for their protection. I'll let you know about other rules as they apply.

Also, if you'd like to keep tabs on this blog easily, you can drag the web address http://handbrosegarden.blogspot.com into your bookmarks bar. I'm sure there's a way to have updates emailed to you, too, but I don't know what it is--yet. Perhaps some nice, blog-savvy reader can include this info in a comment!

Happy reading!