savor summer ... t minus 6

my "baby" is 5!

today we finished our month of birthdays with connor turning five!

little league world series for the wii was our first gift opened-so we had special brother one-on-one time!happy birthday phone calls

a bike ride to our new school for timing purposes

dinner at chili's

opening special gifts from family and friends

our 5 for 5 collection for connor- 5 chocolate cupcakes; 5 quarters; 5 smarties; 5 packs of star wars cards; 5 packs of gum!!

connor can finally chew gum!!

a special cake (ordered and picked up by daddy! didn't he do a great job knowing just what Connor would want?) and ice cream with special friends- sydney, zach, mr. marty & mrs. dana.

"connor bonnor" you are: loving, tenderhearted, happy, curious, fun, smart, bright, and such a negotiator!

my cherished son. I love you connor!

savor summer ... t minus 7

"Make a list of important things to do today. At the top of your list, put "eat chocolate." Now, you'll get at least one thing done today." - Gina Hayes

some days chocolate is the only thing that helps.

savor summer ... t minus 11, 10, 9, 8

okay, so the end of summer is flying by.
I can't even remember what I did on friday (11)...sorry.

I spent saturday and sunday (10 & 9) with my sister in ohio helping her pack up to be ready to move labor day weekend. our time was focused on purging, throwing out, donating, and packing all of kathy's belongings. while we didn't have time to do much else...we were able to share a few good meals outside of the boxes- panera and bob evans were our favorites. I enjoyed my time helping my sister. being a blessing to someone I love. the whole area of organization is a strength and passion for me, so I enjoyed sharing the time.

monday (8) brought a very tired mama. I'm getting old. all the weekend activity wore me out. so I fluttered around from task to task. my most favorite was a long nap this afternoon.

savor summer ... t minus 12

so today, I had finally "had it" with the tv. I don't often revolt against it, but after hearing: "can I play the wii?"; "can I play the xbox?"; "can I watch a show?" all morning, I was done!

connor went to his room for a rest and spencer to his for his afternoon read time. once they were both back asking the same old questions, I pulled out the drawing pads, coloring books, markers, crayons, colored pencils, and perler beads. no tv for the afternoon. coloring pictures to mail to friends, perler creations to add to their collections, and drawing creations all made for an afternoon of togetherness.

at the end of our creative time, connor said "I drew truth."

"you drew truth? how did you do that?", I said.

this is what he drew-

"the Bible, it's truth." connor said

wonder if they'll ask as many questions tomorrow?

40 day tribute finale

okay, so my good intentions got me nowhere on my 40 day tribute to my husband. I was able to manage 2 posts...how sad. however, his surprise party went off without a hitch thanks to proper planning, time invested, and good friends and family to help pull it off.

these are just a few of my favorite photos of the day:

and a final A to Z tribute to P. Mark:

A attentive, accepting, available, apple

B "bud man", brother, believer, baseball fan

C caring, communicator, creative

D dad, devoted, dedicated

E energetic, exerciser, explorer

F fun, forgiving, family man, friend, father

G God focused, goofy, great

H honorable, honest, hard worker, husband, hugs, big heart

I involved, interested, in touch, intelligent

J joyful, jolly

K kind, Keillor, kindred

L loving, laugh, live, love, like

M moment maker, margin stretcher, mac man

N non-judgemental

O out of the box, oregon

P polite, prairie home companion, private

Q quirky, "quite"

R resourceful, responsible, relater

S sensitive, selfless, servant, son, "sweet"

T trusting, teacher, tender, thinker, traveler, talented, techno

U understanding, uncle

V valued, vermont, volunteer

W willing, win win seeker

X Xmas lover

Y young at heart, "yankee" magazine

Z zainey

this list isn't complete, as I know there will be many more words you think of as you look down my list. I encourage you to share those with Mark.

love you, honey. I trust the Lord will bless me with many more years with you!

savor summer ... t minus 13

feet to the fire.

finding time to work.

my eyes were opened today- how can God do His part if I don't do mine? so I'm going to start doing my part (small as it is) so God can do His part (large as it is).

focused on my business today and future commitments.

many of you know, one of my best friends, Kris, was diagnosed with breast cancer back in May of this year. since then she has battled this disease with determination, hope, courage, and strength. our company, The Pampered Chef, has added the "Making Strides Against Breast Cancer" one of it's donation programs, so, I've joined Kris' team- the bosom buddies- in the walk on October 18th in Ann Arbor. you'll remember walking in a benefit race was one of my personal goals. now, I have a purpose- to walk ... in honor of Kris, my cousin Karen Gavroy, the memory of mark's grandma griffis, and the cure that will prevent future generations from being diagnosed.

you can help the American Cancer Society as well! donate to my goal using the sidebar link, walk with us, or find an event close to you and join in. there is no small amount. every cent earned brings us ALL one step closer to a cure. thanks for your support.

savor summer ... t minus 14

I'm a day late and a dollar short. we enjoyed an afternoon at the pool with friends today. final days of an open swimming pool. no pictures today.

savor summer ... t minus 15

I learn something new every day.

The Busy Mom's Devotional, Lisa T. Bergren
excerpts from God Interruptions, chapter 10

did you know in New Testament Greek that "bless" as in "God Bless You" means "interrupt"?

so, you're actually saying "may God interrupt your life."

a little bump up against the Holy one, or a body slam into Christ when you need it.

"how often do we see challenges, obstacles, difficulties, traumas as little darts (or big spears) from the Evil One instead of sweet hand-offs from the Lord on high? How do we look at things? Is it possible to change our perspective and therefore find joy in everything?"

Lord, let me look at each situation, each of your creations, each bit of nature as gifts from you ... little reminders of your awesome love for us. let me love each one with a bit greater love. a love like the ocean ... always present, always constant and always dependable.

The more you know someone, the more you love them.
The more you love someone, the more you trust them.
The more you trust someone, the more you serve them.
Lord, I want to know you more ... much, much more.

savor summer ... t minus 16

a day to recharge...

church- loved singing "Shout to the Lord"

simple lunch- sandwiches for both of us

low key afternoon- stitching, a nap, laundry, ironing

relaxing evening- another bike ride with little one

didn't have a picture for today until connor decided to create a smiley face out of Cheetos (yes, I occasionally allow these not so healthy snacks). thought this was adorable!

savor summer ... t minus 17

• an organized morning finishing up spencer's room before school starts


• a leisure filled afternoon with a little shopping along the way for school needs


• a quiet evening with my youngest riding bikes

savor summer ... t minus 18

• I so enjoyed my day today. a day full of short blessings. I prayed for this kind of day. one lead by the Spirit doing the most important things.

• the last day of VBS allowed me to spend another block of time at panera...this time working.

• I set myself up on the slow side, in a corner, facing the wall with my ipod playing natasha bedingfield. you see, I'm a people watcher. I'm the odd one who is upset that I can no longer go to the airport early to pick up mark and just sit, watch, and imagine. I think I sometimes frustrate mark because I am constantly watching, wondering, and speculating about the people around us. I'm not sure why I think it's necessary to figure out such silly things. who cares why they're there; where they're going; what they're eating? I think I need more focus.

I haven't worked consistently this summer, so I had been feeling a bit 'out of touch' with my business. my stack of "to read/review/do" was growing fast and tall. today was just what I needed ... time. my challenge over this next week is to continue to find time.

just me on a Spirit filled day.

self portrait
another favorite skirt from target, my favorite fossil watch, and of course there was some knitting.

photo by sor

savor summer ... t minus 19

I continue to savor my summertime moments. thanks for the reminder that these relaxed days will soon be gone, lisa. I'm enjoying the search during my days for summertime moments to remember.

today, while the boys were at VBS, I had lunch with kelly at panera. what a blessing to share lunch with her. our time flew by. kelly and jerry are currently in the next stage of life (empty nesters) who have become our close friends. I find comfort in friends you can trust who have been down the road you travel. different children, different experiences, different perspectives for sure, but trusted friends who listen and advise in love. thanks kelly. you're a wonderful friend to me.

my new favorite skirt from target...


my favorite soup and salad at panera

my boys playing tag at the playground

savor summer ... t minus 20

lisa had the idea of savoring "summer photos" for the last days of summer vacation. loved the idea! so we have 20 days until school begins september 2nd, and these are the photos each day that allow me to savor summer. enjoy!

I was able to make a quick solo trip to the mall today, while the boys were at VBS. I found the clearance shoe rack at macy's and found these flops! I was willing to pay the 50% off price-$20 but was totally blessed when they rang up $10!! I questioned the price- then said "thank you" to the shoe clerk. these flops are complete summer- love the plaid cloth, love the khaki color, and how about those tan feet from the beach? love them!

it's been a summer of flops-

thanks sweet!

you'll notice a new blog banner!

kristyn knits visited hilton head island, s.c. and mark recorded it! thanks sweet for taking the time to take the picture of me at my most favorite place, edit the photo, and add it to my blog. your encouragement for this place for my thoughts, feelings, and crafts continues to be an inspiration for it all! without you, it may not have happened; and without you, it wouldn't continue. for you give me confidence that this voice is heard, valued and appreciated by others.

love you!

another year older

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPENCER!

spencer turned 11 today. I can hardly believe he is that old. it seems like just yesterday mark and I were learning how to feed and bathe him in the hospital. time flies. the challenge now is to make it fly as slowly as possible.

spencer had in his own words a "great day"

• it began with passing up breakfast at panera for mom's chocolate chip pancakes (made me feel good, so I added a happy face, #11, and S to his pancakes)
• getting excited each time the phone rang knowing there were probably birthday wishes on the other end
• relaxing in front of the tv and computer
• to the pool for a couple hours of swimming with jarrett, where he saw a few friends from school
• play football in the backyard
• eat pizza for dinner and chocolate birthday cake with thick icing and sprinkles for dessert
• open "awesome" gifts

a great day according to my 11 year old. "I won't complain about thank you notes this year, mom. my gifts were awesome!"

spencer and jarrett had another great "play date". do we still call them play dates when the children are now eleven years old? jarrett is spencer's oldest friend. they've been friends since gymboree days when they were only eighteen months old! they've been playing once a week ever since. what a special friendship they share. blessings.

I pray God's blessings, His love, His protection, His wisdom, His peace, His provision, and His joy on you spencer. I love you dearly.

future projects

amidst lisa's travel projects was a cross stitch sampler. it was adorable! have you ever forgotten how much you enjoy something until watching someone else do it reminds you? I have-and cross stitch is it for me. I love to do it! cross stitch is the first "craft" I remember my mom teaching me how to do. I remember it being fun to pick projects, easy to do, easy to transport, and even more fun framing and displaying.

thanks mom! for teaching me how to cross stitch. I stitched even though it wasn't popular at grandma's house. my grandmother is an out-of-this-world quilter, yet she always said cross stitch was just too small for her. what??? if you saw her quilt stitches, you wouldn't believe that for a second.

thanks mom! for always saying "yes" to new projects, which meant more patterns, more canvas, and more floss.

thanks mom (and dad)! for paying to have my finished projects framed. they could have all ended up in a drawer for no one else to enjoy, but you didn't allow that to happen.

during our shopping day, lisa and I made a Uturn back to a small shopping plaza to see what we could find. when we only found restaurants and a theatre, we thought the turn was for not. then lisa spotted it... "cross stitch junction." parked and we were in. this shop ended up being one of my favorite's, and if we were quilters, we would have been in craft heaven.

we found a couple projects for the coming months-one for fall and one for winter (to remind us that summer is coming).

vacation knitting

vacation offered me the opportunity to finish several of my knitting projects. this picture shows my craft bag "locked and loaded" (as my dad would say before every road trip). it was wonderful to knit with my best friend lisa! do you get inspired by others as well? I think that's why quilting groups, knitting circles, and scrapbooking crops are so popular. we get and give inspiration to one another. what better way to share-you share a pattern, a friend knits that pattern, then shares the finished project with someone else. one big circle begins just from our ability to share and inspire. all the projects I finished at the beach will be given away to friends and family. I encourage you to share a project this month as well. we all have something to give.

Project #1 Walkabout Throw
the long awaited finish to my walkabout throw. this will be a Christmas gift for a special grma.


Pattern: Walkabout Throw found in Easy Afghans for Knitters
Yarn: Classic Worsted, Universal Yarn Inc., Color 9611
Needle: Size 8 Circular
Finished Size: 50"w x 27"h
Mods: size change and fringe omitted
Stitch Count: 41,400

while this ended up being an easy knit, this was a labor of love. it took me over 55 hours of knitting to finish this project. I had several frogs before the pattern was familiar and I achieved a consistent speed. the fun of the pattern texture all happens in just one row of knitting.

Project #2 Cotton Cowl

Pattern: Pashmina Cowl, Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Yarn: Lion Ease, Cotton Ease, Color-Lake

Needle: Size 5 Circular

I got the inspiration to knit this after seeing leslie's charmed cowl. how beautiful is that? easy knit-you just knit, knit, knit.... I did a swatch for the cotton ease yarn and cast on 104 stitches to make the pattern size of 20"x 13".

Project #3 Connor's Thorpe



Pattern: Thorpe by Kirsten Kapur found on Ravelry
Yarn: Cascade 220, Charcoal and Navy
Needle: Size 10 Circular

this is becoming a familiar phrase... when I saw leslie's ...I knew these would be great for all three of my guys. however, the casting on for the knitting from the top down, totally frustrated me! this project is finished in large part because of Lisa's skill! she started it and finished it (with the crocheted border). I left off the hanging cords as connor likes to put everything in his mouth; lisa and I thought it a good idea not to give him a temptation.

Project #4 Feather and Fan Dishcloth

Pattern: Feather and Fan Dishcloth by Linda Smith

Yarn: Sugar 'n Cream, green variegated

Needle: Size 7 Bamboo

lisa knit her cloth (purple & blue) on the trip down to south carolina. I loved it! I think it may be my favorite dishcloth I've knit yet! you'll notice a difference between her cloth and mine. my green cloth has ridges and hers is without. I followed the pattern on row 7 and knit, while Lisa did a mod and purled that row. love them both!! lucky me my craft bag had a stash of dishcloth yarn at the ready.

vacation summary

I've missed writing in this spot, sharing bits of me with you, but in exchange for not being here, I made lasting memories with mark and my boys. I have a hard time relaxing (this will come as no surprise to some of you). my tendency is to keep busy, check off items on a list, make a new list, do, do, do. can you tell why vacation may be hard for me? well, I had a few rough days to start after being in zoom mode for the past month, but after those rough days, I began to chill. sand between my toes, surf under my beach chair, sunshine warming my body, shells on the beach, kites to fly, people watching, knitting with my best friend, schedule free days, not one ring of the phone, moments to enjoy, memories to be made. vacation was slowly recharging my battery.

we had another awesome vacation in hilton head, south carolina with the quicks (john, lisa, maggie, kenzie, and john samuel). lisa was my college suitemate and best friend at grove city. and over the years (through our diligent efforts to maintain close contact) she has remained my best friend, and our families have become close as well. so we call the quicks family/friends... not just friends.

"so is it still called vacation when you go through an entire box of laundry detergent?" lisa asked as we ended our week together.
these are just a few of my favorite activity photos of our week together (john had his new canon camera with him, so there are many more photos to see-check out my flickr):

beach time- wednesday we went for a long beach walk to explore the nature of the ocean. ie search for sand dollars and star fish. along the way, we saved many star fish stuck in the sand and out of the surf.

boogie boards- last year the quicks introduced us to boogie boards and each day we would try to ride the waves. early this season, I purchased a new boogie board for mark in anticipation of his wave riding on vacation. unfortunately the waves during the morning hours, while we were at the beach, were less than rideable. john said it was the new board curse. so one evening the boys decided nighttime riding might be more fun- mark, spencer, and john spent an evening in this rough surf. connor's picture was during the day in shallow water- no worries about safety.

go fly a kite- lisa and her family each have a kite and spool they use each year at ocean city. they shared this tradition with us, and we were hooked! mark and I had the best time flying kites! the breeze was strong, so the kites were easy to put up and keep up. I don't remember flying kites as a kid; I'm sure we did, it's just not a strong memory.

happy. not wanting it to end is how I felt.

pool time- the pool buddies were back together on this vacation. if we were at the pool, connor and mark were in it! just sitting in the water proved to be the time when great conversation was shared.

our annual visit to salty dog cafe- after a day of shopping with lisa, we set up shop on the deck at salty dog cafe for our annual visit. lisa and I saved tables as mark and john organized the troops and met us for pizza and an evening of shopping. putt putt fun- we found a new favorite putt putt course-adventure cove! we had the kids in "line up" position in their salty dog t-shirts purchased the previous night!
traveling home- packed and ready to roll. as the troops gathered and said their goodbyes I snapped a few photos. how lisa and john packed that car is amazing! and yes...they were back in their salty dog tshirts.

now we're going through "quick" withdraw. our sadness of not being together will last a few days then we'll start to get back to normal and anticipate our next visit with our family/friends. thanks for the memories! all good things must come to an end, but our memories will stay with us forever.

* be sure to visit mark's blog (firstinitialp link from my page) to read his thoughts about our vacation.