I've been encouraging the kids to be creative on the weekends instead of shrinking their brains playing video games, so yesterday's creativity sparked Retroville.

Wecome to Retroville!

See ya!

This little town was Z's creation.  He had an airport, a train station, downtown, the "residential area" (yes, he used those words), and a farm. I love this kid.

Remember my knitted creation sneak peek a few days back?  It's a Juvenile Sea Nettle!

Hansigurumi Sea Nettle

This was a fun knit, although it hurt my fingers badly. To get gauge, I knit this on #3 needles with a horrible Vanna's Choice yarn. This deadly combination almost killed my hands for about 2 days, but the finished result was completely worth it. Next time, I'm going with the recommended Cascade 220 in the hopes that my hands won't suffer as badly.

This afternoon, we're taking a trip to Oakdale Cemetery, one of the city's oldest cemeteries dating back to the early 1800s. (There are a few older ones dating back to the 1700s - if you're in Wilmington, walk around 2nd and 3rd Streets downtown and go cemetery hunting.) Anyway, I've lived here almost my whole life and have never been to Oakdale so I'm looking forward to it. I'll post some photos soon. 

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Ding ding ding ding! LICE!

Gross.

Holy crap.  What a week.  I have cried, laughed, cried and cried some more. Who knew persistant little bugs could drive a woman to tears? Z came home from school with a full head of lice 10 days ago and it has been a circus ever since. After getting a short sheet of paper from his teacher on what to do at home to treat it, I went to the internet to dig up some info. Did you know there is terribly conflicting information all over the internet on lice?

Needless to say, they reinfested and this time, they didn't stop with Z.  They laid their precious eggs on G and me, giving us a case of the creepy crawlies.  Yikes.  Should've vacummed more.

We are now all treated and moving into the 4th day after the reinfestation.  The kids and I walk around the house in shower caps in the hopes that if they're still in the couches or the carpet, they won't find their way on to our heads.

I had to bag up all of my knitting.  I've already got knitting withdrawal, and I've got at least two days to go!

There is something to laugh at in all of this.  Last night we were all sitting around the dinner table eating with our shower caps on when G started telling us a story.  G loves to tell all sorts of stories and he makes them up as he goes along, resulting in hilarious peeks into mind. He starts off with a story about how when he was a baby, he and his sister were playing, and he accidentally stuck his finger in her ear, and when he pulled it out, he sniffed it like this, and he lifts his finger to his nose, makes the goofiest face ever, and take a long hard sniff. Gross. I start laughing so hard that I cry. You had to be there, and it was one of those moments that made me wish I had my camera turned on. He doesn't even have a sister.

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I just picked up Rosie O'Donnell's Crafty U from the library, and I must say, it is absolutely worth paying full price for.  My kids are way too into this:

Shrinking Brain

... and not enough into non-brain-shrinking activities.  Enter CRAFTASTIC SUNDAYS!  I decided that the entire family should craft together on Sundays which kills two birds with one stone really.  We have more family time and less bickering!  So, this Sunday we set out to make and paint clay using Rosie's book.  Here's a photo tour through the afternoon:

First, you make the clay with kitchen ingredients.  We starting making simple balls which turned into jellyfish, bowls, bobby pin holders, fish, starfish, and my DH's lovely bowl of yarn made just for me. :)  Then you paint:

This was truly the fun part and the kids had a lot of fun creating new colors from the three we started with.  In the end, we had a tray full of lovely clay goodies, lots of laughs, and an afternoon to remember.

If you don't have the book and have kids, run out and get it.  It's that good. 

That evening, I finished up a little knitting project that I've been working on.  Can you guess what it is?

What am I?

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Remember the story of Rumpelstiltskin?  Ever since I read that story as a child, I've been fascinated with making yarn.   

I love the idea of making my own yarn and have wanted to take up spinning for a good two years now, but the cost to get started has squashed my dreams for now.  However, that doesn't mean that I don't read magazines like Spin-Off and dream that one day, I too will join the ranks of women that knit their garments with their handspun.

In the latest issue, I spotted the insanely cute Ladybug Spinning Wheel.  I don't know why I haven't seen this beauty before, but she is really tempting me.

Miss Ladybug

See what I mean? And red is my favorite color too. Too bad my LYS doesn't carry her because once I do decide to take the plunge, I'd really like to try her out first.

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