Traveling often means more knitting time. Here's where I was as of Friday night, after we returned home. There is still the applied I-cord trim and more I-cord "ties" with tassels to do, and then tidy up the inside and block. I may block first and then add the applied I-cord.
I knitted at the airport, after we went through security and before we boarded our plane.
I knitted the whole time we were on the plane. We spent the night at our son's family's home in Portland, where I did some knitting. Then we had the 2 1/2 hour drive home to Bend, in broad daylight, so I got even more knitting done in the car.
I did some knitting while we were at our daughter's home, but I was mostly busy with other things when I was there. The guys played games or watched football games.
I did some of David's PEG feeding, as needed, doing all four feedings one day and most of the feedings another day. He needs to be fed this way because of his ALS. Alexa and I did some cooking for the family and guests (us) to give Karen a break. Karen and I went shopping together (groceries and medical supplies). Peter and Alexa picked up David's food, which comes in shelf-stable drink boxes. Peter and Charlie made a run to Sam's Club and Maynards for paper products and plastic window liners to keep the heat in, especially important because David's recliner is right next to one of the big windows in the living room. He got the plastic installed on all the windows that needed it. We helped the family go through the shoes that were stored in the shoe rack by the back door and piled on the floor there. Some of the shoes were outgrown or for summer. The outgrown ones were culled from the collection. Everyone took their summer shoes to their own closets. I grabbed a pair of Crock-type slip-on shoes that no longer fit Daphne but fit me. It will be easier for the family to get in and out of the back door now. We repaired the hat rack by the back door. Peter and I are going to try to go back in April again to look after David, so Karen can take the kids to their dance competition out-of-town. David's sister is coming for another competition. There are only two caregivers in Onalaska who can give this kind of care, unfortunately, and they are very much in demand.
On Tuesday, a young man drove down from Eau Claire (Wisconsin) to deliver a couple of items David needs. One was a Hoyer Lift to get David onto the toilet when he can no longer walk. We got a demonstration. (They will have a portable toilet, or commode, to keep in the living room.)
He also brought a motorized wheelchair, which David should be able to use to get around after their wheelchair ramp is built in the spring. David tried it out, and he was able to operate it using his foot right now. When he is no longer able to move his foot, he will use a special iPad to operate it using his eyes, the way he operates his phone now. The special iPad has already arrived. Too bad we have to wait for the ramp and spring weather, but it will be nice for him to anticipate. He can use it in the house, although the rooms in their house are small, and it will be hard for him to get around indoors.
On New Year's Eve we had the caregiver all morning until 1:00 PM, so the four ladies drove into La Crosse to "run some errands." Daphne had been wanting/needing a better flute for some time and had been playing already for about four years with the used beginner model she had. Right off the bat we met a nice lady who was buying a piano. She told us she plays the flute, and she and Daphne had a nice chat, during which Daphne got some advice about how to choose a new flute. The man who owns the store showed Daphne what he had available for purchase, and while she was looking at them, he took her old flute to their instrument-repair person, who determined that it had no trade-in or sale value, but recommended she keep it for marching band or to use if her "good" flute needed repair or tuning up.
They allowed her to try out the three flutes they had available and showed her to a small sound-proof room she could use, while we chatted with the salesperson. While we waited, we chatted with the salesperson and discovered that we had a lot in common. (A history of participating in choral music, the salesperson's niece participating in the same school choir as daphne and various opinions about things. Daphne emerged after a while saying she had made her decision. She chose the Yamaha. It wasn't the most expensive (although they were all expensive), but she liked how it sounded and operated best. Alexa had hooked up with a man with a French horn (Johan plays the French horn) and got some great advice about upgrade choices when the time comes for Johan to move up to a better instrument. We had another conversation with the customer who was buying a piano and the clerk who was helping her. The piano lady had taught journalism and worked for a newspaper much of her career. Since I had also worked in journalism for several years, we had a lot to talk about, and the subject of books came up. I told them about my books for children, and the clerk looked me up on the computer as we stood there. The piano lady asked her to write down the information. They sounded as if they might want to purchase one of my books.
After we left the music store, we walked to Fitting Knit Shop, just a couple of blocks away. We had a little chat about knitting, and then Alexa and I looked around at the yarn. I ended up buying two balls of Rico Designs Essentials Merino Plus DK in a medium-dark grey. Then we went to lunch at a Thai restaurant close to home.
We celebrated New Year's Eve together but went to bed early, as Peter and Alexa were picking us up in the rental car at 4:30 AM for the drive to Minneapolis/St. Paul airport. We were lucky with the weather on the drive to the airport, as well as the drive home from Peter and Alexa's the next day.
I had left my car and house keys at Peter and Alexa's house, because I had no use for them in Wisconsin, so when we got to the house, I dug out my little key chain sheep and attached her to my keys. She told me her name is Wandering Wanda, because she was finding herself in Oregon after being created in Ireland. She says her pronouns are "she" and "ewe." It should be easier to find my keys in my purse, with Wanda holding onto them.
We celebrated Christmas (the Wisconsin part) on my birthday last Friday. We had tried to limit our presents to things that didn't take up much space, like gift cards or electronic delivery. We had already celebrated Christmas in Bend with Jim and left the presents we received from each other at home. We had opened a few presents at Peter and Alexa's and had left some things there, but I still had to pack some presents I received in Wisconsin for the return trip. We had eaten the Pulla (Finnish cardamom braid) I brought, so that was gone. The yarn and fat quarters from Alexa didn't take up much more space than the Pulla had. (The blue yarn came with this pattern, which returned home packed between my Chullo hat pattern and my iPad.)
However, besides some cute little hummingbird earrings, Charlie had given me a package of socks, a rather bulky item. He "volunteered" to pack them in his bag. Along with a six-pack of beer he bought in Wisconsin and two bottles of mead we (the four of us) had received as presents from Karen and David. He was going to have to check his bag because none of the liquid items met the 3.4 oz. maximum limit allowed in our carry-on. I guess my socks made good padding.
Of course, I also had to pack my souvenir yarn from Fitting Knit Shop. I'm thinking of this cardigan. I don't have a pattern yet, and I didn't want to get too much to pack in my carry on bags, but I can order more from them. I’ll try to do that today. I’ll need six more skeins, because I want to add pockets.
I stuffed socks and underwear down into the shoes and placed each shoe in a different corner of my carry-on bag. I dug them out to wear when we were loading the car, so I could slip them off and on as I went in and out. Then I kept them on for the drive home.
When I got home, the first thing I did was check on my little basil plants. They held up well without water for 10 days, but I gave them each a nice drink before I did anything else.
We had hoped to pick up the pups on our way home, but the people who run the kennel were celebrating their son's birthday with a party away from home. We went back for them after unloading our stuff at the house. They squealed when they saw us, kept squealing as we loaded their beds and other equipment into the car and squealed most of the way home. They ran around the house, checking it out, and went out to the backyard to check things there. They finally relaxed about supper time. It was too late for a walk, but we had a nice walk on Saturday.
I had thrown our leftovers into the freezer section of the fridge before we left. We had about one serving of quiche and one serving of lasagne, so I pulled those out for our first meal back at home. We had an unopened package of salad lettuce and a few baby tomatoes, so we had salad with it. It was a good thing, because it was pretty late in the day by the time we had picked up the dogs and returned home. On Saturday I fed my sourdough starter and made a loaf of sourdough bread with the "discard." (That's what we call what's left after we feed the starter.)
I had cleaned out the fridge before we left, leaving only things I knew would keep, so I had onions, garlic, carrots, celery and cabbage to make something with. We had some cooked brown rice in the freezer, so I thawed that. With a can of mixed beans, a can of tomatoes and some TVP (texturized vegetable protein), it made a nice chili, cooked in the slow cooker while the bread was rising.
I'm participating in the ALS Association's 50-Mile Walk/Run Challenge. I need to walk 50 miles during January. So far, I'm on track. And today is David's birthday!
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What's in The Doll's Storybook: Pippa needs help with homework, and Mariah is able to help in Apostrophes!
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