Scoot is 11!

Scoot had a birthday a couple of weeks ago, and it was a pretty happy one.  We didn't do anything spectacular, but he didn't have any homework.  That has to count for something.

(A note concerning picture quality:  our camera went into a coma on Halloween.  So for the birthday photos we pulled out the new video camera, which also has still capability.  It turns out that it doesn't use many pixels for still shots.  I hope the video looks better.  A week later, I started looking at new cameras, noticing how many megapixels are standard for only a bit more than standard repair cost.  And, lo and behold, the camera revived!  But not for Scoot's birthday.)

We gave him a new Boy Scout uniform, since he maxed out his Cub Scout shirt.  Look at all those pins!  Not pictured is the Arrow of Light, which went straight on his new shirt.

D2 bound, illustrated, and wrote a book for Scoot, in that order.  In accordance with the old advice to "write what you know," most of the dialogue consists of animals saying, "Hi!"

I crocheted a pig for Scoot, using this Lion Brand pattern,

and baked him an apple pie. 

The coolest thing I made for Scoot was a guaranteed gift success--he designed it himself.  Scoot is a talented soccer goalie, as well as a nerd like the rest of the family.  The classic scholar athlete.  He has recently been reading Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  So when we brainstormed for unique goalie jersey ideas, this logo came quickly to mind:

This image is a good reflection of Scoot's attitude as a goalie: he respects good shots, and can't wait to block them.  Bring it on! 

Oh, but go ahead and panic.

I ordered the Nebula goalie jersey from Epic Sports, and appliqued a silver version of the iconic planet.  Naturally, the number on the back had to be a silver 42.

Scoot's teammates may not (okay, definitely don't) understand, but he's a frood who really knows where his towel is, and he's ready for anything.

Keep up the good work, Scoot!

11/11/11

I really haven't had any reason to write the date today.  I have neither filled out any forms, nor recorded any transactions in my checkbook.  But such a date deserves to be written, so here it is.

You probably won't be surprised that I like patterns.  A lot.  I have spent much time in public restrooms, staring at the tiles on the floor and trying to discern their patterns.  I analyze the repeats of prints on the dresses in front of me at church, and I try to arrange menus such that we don't eat the same major ingredients too often.

And yet, I also admire the apparent randomness in the color arrangements of quilts like this, this, and this, all from Cluck Cluck Sew.  If there is a repeating color pattern in any of those, it escapes me.  But each still looks harmonious.

So I decided to try a little randomness in a quilt for D2.  I chose a Disappearing Nine Patch scheme, which can look pretty well-mixed.  But I feared that I would favor certain combinations in the original nine-patches.  So I got out a sudoku book. 

I assigned a number to each stack of squares, then started sewing them together according to the puzzle answers.

The first square did not come out the way my pattern-seeking mind would prefer.  The focus fabrics are all together, with the supporting contrast at the other end.  I knew, though, that each nine-patch would be different, and that everything would change when I sliced them up.  So I followed the sudoku faithfully for the first nine blocks.

Then I couldn't take it anymore.  I've only made small adjustments so far.  Hopefully it will all balance in the end.  D2 will probably never notice, unless he's like me.  If so, his quilt will give him something to puzzle over for a long time.

Halloween Twins?

Nearly. 

If you look more closely, you can see that

Scoot is a Bat

and D2, a Cat.

Our color and rhyme scheme

the Caterpillar did foil

by choosing to be

a stony Gargoyle.

And Rollo?

His outfit turned out to defy description,

even from his glib tongue.

He designed it himself, based on this model of combat fashion:

Rollo's version is a little brighter:

Isn't that a great shiny jet pack?  I bet Boba Fett wishes he had colored duct tape.

While it was originally supposed to be a Boba Fett costume, Rollo could see the difference, and wouldn't admit to his earlier aspirations. 

The two visions remind me of our clan tartan, though.

The Menzies plaid comes in Hunting colors,

and this more formal Dress style.

I think Boba Fett would prefer the more subdued colors for bounty hunting,

so I present Fett Formal:

You don't want to be in the way when his thermal detonator goes off!

We actually decorated the pumpkins this year.

At the last minute, I foresaw that I would join the boys as a Gypsy:

The shawl worked nicely in the chilly evening air.

I hope you had a happy Halloween!

Stash to Treasure: Creamy Möbius

I've always gotten cold easily.  My hands are usually cold, and my arms chill quickly.  If Dandelionslayer had known how frigid my toes can be, he might have gotten cold feet himself.  I wear socks and slippers all winter, and I've never had any use for three-quarter-sleeved sweaters. 

In the past couple of years, I've developed another reaction to chilly weather.  When I am cold, my shoulder muscles tense up severely.  This can happen even when my extremeties don't mind the temperature yet.  It hurts to be cold.

Considering the problem, I wondered, is that why old ladies wear shawls?  And is that what I have to do when I go out?  I started looking for patterns, and found an alternative:

The Möbius.  Remember the Mobius strip, a surface with only one side, one edge, and all sorts of odd mathematical properties?  Well, I followed this pattern to crochet one.  It might be more mathematically convincing if I had made it from only one length of yarn.  But from a destashing point of view, it was quite satisfying to use up three leftover hanks.  Even if they don't quite match.  It really does help to have an extra layer over my shoulders during windy evening soccer games.  I don't have to tie it, or figure out how to hold it closed.

I think I'll wait a little longer to wear shawls, until sometime after I succumb to wearing bifocals.

Project Management

"You should always have three quilts: one on the cutting table, one on the quilting frame, and one in your head."

Thus advised the sweet old ladies who taught me to quilt. I find that it applies not only to quilts, but to all the projects I do. And I always seem to get the most excited about the next project, the one in my head.

For example, I've been working on Halloween costumes. These were mainly designed by the boys, and have been easy, and satisfying. One challenging part remains, and I should be trying to solve it. But during the costume construction, we've been struck by inspiration for a birthday gift for Scoot. It'll be really cool. I can't do it yet. While I wait for a supply to arrive, I should be working on another gift that I already started for him. It's mostly done. It will be easy to complete. Oh, and there's another quick one that's not so interesting, but necessary. But now I'm getting excited about a Christmas project. It's time, isn't it, to start on Christmas projects? How many shipping days are left?

Some people I know rarely move beyond the planning stage. I do like to finish my projects, but the satisfaction of finishing one is inextricably mingled with the anticipation of beginning the next.

How about you? Do you focus on one thing at a time, scatter your attention among different works in progress, or keep lining up more plans as you go?

I won't even mention the quilt in my head. It can't be next yet.

"This must be Thursday . . . "

"I never could get the hang of Thursdays," lamented Arthur Dent, in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  I have to agree.  Thursdays are pretty chaotic around here.  The boys' schools run on different schedules on Thursdays.  Every week I have to make notes in my planner to be sure that I drop off, pick up, and receive the boys at the right times.  Then there's a piano lesson, a soccer practice, dinner in a couple of shifts, and everyone goes to Scouts.  Thursdays are a mess.

But maybe D2 has a solution.  His kindergarten teacher has provided him with various memory-enhancing songs, including one about the days of the week.  He insists that it goes like this:

"Sun-day, Monday
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday,
Sa-turda-ay,
Seven days a week."

I've tried to tell him that this doesn't add up, but I cannot convince him.  D2 doesn't believe in Thursdays.

Sounds good to me.  Too bad my den-leading partner wouldn't appreciate disbelief in Thursdays as an excuse to skip Cub Scouts.

Which day is busiest for you?

Sleigh Bells Ring

I've received an early Christmas gift this year. 

My story, "Foreign Exchange," has been given the Publisher's Choice award in LDS Publisher's 2011 Christmas Story Contest!

Love and encouragement from family and friends are more wonderful gifts, which helped make this surprise possible.  Thank you!