work/life balance

A new article just came out last week! (and yes, I almost missed it...)

Here's a link:
Talmudic advice on Lifestyle, Work

Note: This ran in the Vancouver Jewish Independent but if you get the Winnipeg Jewish Post & News, it may seem familiar.  It ran in both places...

A couple comments:
1) Yes, my sale is still on!  See the below post for more info if you need more knitting to balance out your work life.  (Or in my case, to do some work while balancing out the writer with twins lifestyle...)
2) August and early September may be a bit hit or miss on the blog front.  Summer camp ends today, and it will be me, twins, and dogs for the foreseeable future.  Lots of time for playing in the front yard, going to wading pools, taking the dogs on walks, and maybe even some time for knitting and spinning as I watch everybody.  All work or email responses happen at night, when the Professor is home, or in between adventures...please forgive any delays.

If you're curious about August is like over here, feel free to check out the blog archive...yes, the boys are now seven, but I suspect the sunshine and games will be mostly the same.

Prioritizing Play

This article, which I wrote a long time ago, just went live on the CBC:

Prioritizing play: Splash pads, parks and wading pools are vital infrastructure, Joanne Seiff writes

..and my kids are playing with enormous balls in the front yard as I post this on a Sunday afternoon.  It's been a strange time to work on editing this piece for publication.

Here's to hoping all kids, everywhere, (regardless of immigration status, which of course, they do not control) can have safe, loving opportunities to play, with hugs and kisses from loved ones after a tumble or when resting and taking a break.

Quick knits for loved ones

A blogger I love reading, Dances with Wool, is posting every day in order to celebrate this time of year.  I'm not able to post every day, but I've been wanting to reach out and communicate more often. 

When I first started blogging, I made lots of friendships and connections through this blog, and the comments were a joy to me.  These days, nobody seems to comment, but according to my 'counter'--a lot of people read.  I'd love to hear from you.  If you are out there and reading, well, I may as well post, too.

Lene, on the above blog, makes a lot of amazing toys and quirky folk art.  I love her creations.  I don't make as many of these toy designs these days, but I used to do a few kid oriented ones.  I looked around and thought about it...what's a good present that a knitter could start now and get done in time for a holiday gift?

I'll try to post about these when I have a chance.  For today, I think that would be--

 the Bug Finger Puppets. 

If you have leftover fingering weight (sock) yarns around, this is a great little project to make for kids.  My twins are six, and still get out these out to make puppet shows every now and again.  You don't have to make all the puppets (of course) and you can use any colors you have on hand...it's all fun.
This design was originally published with Knit Picks way back in 2005!  Although it doesn't look hugely successful on Ravelry in terms of project numbers, it has been a consistent seller for many years--Finger puppets don't go out of fashion with little kids.

My favorite part of the design, at the time, were the beautifully drawn images. This was a collaboration with the great design coordinator at Knit Picks at that time...she had some amazing illustration skills!  I'm including them here so you can enjoy them, too.
 Buck the Butterfly:

 Carl the Caterpillar:

 Doug the Dragonfly:

 Lacey the Ladybug:

 Luna Moth:

 Manny the Mosquito:

It's snowing here today, and Sally the dog and I had a gorgeous walk in the warm flurries.... but something about these puppets always makes me dream of spring and remember summer. :)
The pattern's also available on Loveknitting. 

Teach your children

This article went live a while back and I missed posting about it:
Teach it to your children

That was, in part, because my family took a little jaunt to Calgary.  The professor was helping run a conference at the University of Calgary.  We went along because none of us had ever seen the city.  I was pretty nervous about managing for several days in a new place with two six year olds, but it all worked out fine.

First, I planned the heck out of it...and in our spare time, both boys chased jack rabbits around the university campus. :)
  We went to Heritage Park on Sunday, the Calgary Zoo on Monday, Custom Woolen Mills and the Carstairs park/splash pad on Tuesday, and then Dad (The professor) joined us after his conference was over to go to The Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller- to see dinosaurs on Wednesday,  Then we did a day trip from Calgary to Banff and back to see the Rockies and a good puppet show on Thursday.  On Friday, we flew home.  You should have seen the mountain of laundry...it seemed like the view in Banff, actually.

The boys and I had fun, and oddly, some things turned out to be better at home.  ("We like our zoo better than this Calgary one, Mommy!"  And--"We like your food at home, Mommy!"  All that was heartening)

And---Yes, I'm pretty beat, thanks for asking!

Since then, we've had a lot of appointments, errands, and chores to fit around 'free play' until school starts.  We've got the bubbles, the wading pool in the front yard, and Mommy's spinning basket available to wile away the afternoons.  (Knitting is not as portable as spinning on a spindle while chasing little boys...)

I am thinking a lot about those poor folks in flooded-out Houston and trying to read news reports when I can.  We were emailing with some old friends who have two kids, 4 and 7, earlier this week as the storm began, but haven't heard anything in a while.  I am trying not to worry about it too much--as they are surely busy with much bigger concerns right now...but like most everyone else I encounter, I am keeping those Texans in my thoughts.
    
I am also either hopelessly behind on all my work or I guess some people would say I'm on vacation.  (Hah.)  I imagine my vacation will start right about the time that Grade 1 starts next week?!

Kindergarten, summer's end, new and old projects

We're still playing outside every chance we get...it is still warm enough, too.  While the twins are at the same school for starting kindergarten, they have been absolutely worn out by the start of school.  In fact, we've already had our first virus, which involved one fever, a lot of nose blowing, some coughing, and use of our new plaid handkerchiefs (a gift from Daddy, the Professor).

As the temperature cools, we will have to start going through all our very special treasures.  These involve "dinosaur bones," shells, rocks, and more, all piled up on the windowsill of the porch.  Pretty soon, we'll be either taking in the most special ones, or redistributing the ones that need to find some rock friends in the garden somewhere.

It would be a bad idea to leave these on our porch (near the glass window) in the wintertime.  The winds are big, and nobody wants to sort through rocks to play when it is -20 or colder anyhow!

  We also migrate in our plastic animals:
We do a lot of categorizing, sorting, playing and reorganizing our animals.  It is amazing how interesting this is to one of our twins:  Do you think his dad is a PhD in Zoology who spent a lot of his grad. school time sorting fruit flies?

I have been knitting (forever!) it seems on a ribbed cardigan.  This is a design I did for Knit Picks in 2006 or so.  The copyright long ago returned to me, and I decided to reknit and republish the design in a different yarn: Berroco Remix, a recycled yarn that is really interesting.

However, the design, while not complicated, has been hard to do while chasing boys this summer.  It has shaping, and a stitch pattern, and button bands.  The short version is that I have already knit THREE button bands because one was just not up to par.  Turns out that in August, supervising twins at the wading pool-- is a hard place to make a really precise and tidy button band.

Keep your eyes out for the design --coming soon! --though its release has been slower than I'd hoped. It's called "Plum Ribbed Cardigan."  It is, indeed, plum in color, but the joke is that I meant it as a Southern phrase...it's full of ribbing. (plum ribbed)

After all that purple, you might just see a pair of small socks, worked up in Patons Kroy sock yarn.  These guys travelled around in my purse for months, and I'd knit a row or two when I had a moment.  It's always good to work ahead on the little boy wool sock front...because winter's always coming around here. :)  Might as well cherish this late summer/early fall sunshine as long as I can!

Hey-remember me?!

 Sometimes time gets away from us, right?  Last summer, my kids said their favorite parts of summer were playing in the yard, splashing at the local wading pools, and spending time with Mommy.  I realized that there was something to that.  Despite the hassle of being on 'mom-duty' non-stop during unscheduled vacation time? Free time to play is important.  We all need more of it.  I sure do.

My plan involved summer camp in July (that is happening now), a visit from grandparents (my parents, aka Didi and Bop) and a lot of free time, too.  At the same time, it became clear that we've all needed a round of medical appointments.  Call it a tune-up. Or an overhaul, whatever, we need some "fixing." We had a little less than two weeks off between the end of preschool and the beginning of camp.

To summarize, we had four days last work week before Canada Day. There were also four medical appointments.  I was extremely grateful for the help of two extra adults (grandparents) whose trip from Virginia coincided with all this.

It's also coincided with me feeling generally yucky.  Early in June, I went to the doctor for a 9:15 AM appointment, feeling swollen and sore and out of whack.  Our Professor/the twin's dad was out of the country, beginning field research in Colorado, in the Rockies.  I was managing two dogs and twins on my own.  I dropped off the preschoolers, walked to the doctor's, and passed out there.

No really.  I lost consciousness.

So, when I came back to myself, vomiting and being generally mortified, I got a ride to the hospital in an ambulance.  My twins got an unexpected Monday night sleepover with the preschool director's family.  Another friend took care of my dogs.  A third friend sat with me at the hospital.  The Professor booked a flight home and cut his week of field research short..with only one day in the field.  At 10:30 that night, I came home from the hospital--nobody really knew what happened, hopefully it was a fluke.  I spent several days just resting as much as I could.  I was extremely grateful for all the help I received--thank goodness for all these friends!

However, I still don't feel great, and since then, I've had another appointment, more blood work, and look forward to a referral or two and maybe some more lab tests.   It's been a...time.

I also wrote a CBC piece that got little notice...but recently, another writer linked to it and used it as a jumping off place.  I'm not linking to that second reference, because the writer maybe misunderstood what I wrote, or why I wrote it.  There's no need to give someone publicity for misrepresenting me. I was upset, because there were some assumptions in that response that are wrong...and I wrote this person a note.  That's all for now.  I got no response, and maybe I never will.  Oh well.

Before twins, I felt deeply troubled by or sidelined by negative comments, by inappropriate or unkind words about my work, or even hate mail or threatening phone calls I received as a result of my writing.  These days, while I try to listen and understand that feedback, I read it, maybe learn something, and move on.  I even sometimes have to report it to the cops, and then?  I'm done.  My work is important to me, but it's only part of who I am...and even when I don't feel good or have a lot of work, the 'show' at home must go on.

This week, camp started.  I've made 14 or so jars of strawberry jam, 3 loaves of bread, and cooked a few meals.  I've packed elaborate snacks and lunches for 5 year olds going to the big kid "traveling day camp" for the first time.  I've written some, sent out some emails, done some work.  Today, one of my twins had another appointment...and it took the Professor more than half his work day to deal with it.

I had a physio (physical therapy) appointment at the same time.  In Canada, you can sometimes have acupuncture as part of the appointment.  For a little while after the treatment today, I felt as though someone had taken off a very heavy burden.  I felt better, without the soreness I've felt for weeks.  It was an unexpected gift.

I'm very grateful for all the help I've had lately.  We've enjoyed big adventures despite the medical stuff (new big boy twin beds!  new bikes with training wheels!  the wading pool...at last!).  I hope to do more...everything.  Soon.  Until then, let's sit on this virtual porch, play a bit, and visit.  Please...drop me a line to say hey.  My boys can't wait to do a lemonade stand, too.  :)