Mamma's Weekend Off.

This past weekend I spent a few day's at the Oregon beach with a group of fabulous people with lots of booze. Yes, it was the celebration of Wine and Seafood!

I needed time away and Newport was perfect. Miss Kate rented a two bedroom house that overlooked the ocean. The two couples took the two bedrooms downstairs and I took the couch. There was a moment when I felt like the fifth wheel but most of the time I felt like the kid. I was entertained, served drinks, and allowed to eat anything I wanted! It was heaven!


There was no beach access from the house, but the view was incredible. We did take a few moments to do some sight seeing before heading to the festival and ended up at the Yaquina Head Lighthouse. We were able to climb to the top. I've never been to a lighthouse before. Amazing!


We also saw some wildlife....


This is a good representation of my mental state during the weekend...

Chris took me to the Bite of Oregon a few years back, so I was familiar with food festivals. What I wasn't prepared for was the close density of people in such a small area. Imagine lots of drunk people carrying around sharp skewers of seafood...Yikes! But I did come across some tasty fetta olives, a cranberry wine to die for and a white wine that made me wanting more (and I'm not a white fan!).

As we were leaving the festival there was a super long line of people getting in. So if I were to do it again, I would go early on the friday or sunday. And don't worry, we didn't leave Newport without having a beer at Rouge.

Overall good weekend. Now back to my regular scheduled program. I mean, I do have a race to train for! Bah hahahah.

Small Victories.

The before shot:


Yup. That's what my yarn cabinet looked like earlier this week. It was disorganized and with every opening, random balls would roll out. I realized something needed to be done when one of the balls ended up near Noro's mouth. He sniffed. I shrieked.

Weeks turned to months and the yarn kept piling up. So on Monday I went to target and bought tubs. The craziness turned into something a little more manageable.


I'm a little worried about my fiber "breathing"...though I could be wrong. Do I need to worry about this? Hmm...well either way I'm super happy. And when I needed to find a superwash sock yarn to finish up a project, it took less then a minute to get it. And that is my small victory for the week!

Noro Update

Shoot.

I occurred to me that I haven't given an update on Noro! Bad mommy.

Well Noro is healing, though not as fast as we would like. He can get up and walk around but not for too long. Occasionally he gets himself in a position where he strains himself and he yelps. But those times are getting few and far between.

It's time to get a second opinion on the extent of the damage. I'll update more when we know!

Birthday, Valentines and Monster Jam

Sorry I haven't written in a while. There has been so much going on! Last weekend was Chris's birthday and then this weekend, Valentines day. Much to do, much ado.

It's always hard to buy for a guy. Especially for a guy who doesn't want or need anything that he can't buy himself. It's quite frustrating actually. So I decided to make stuff. The coolest of the projects was a deadhead blazer shirt that I screenprinted using a freezer paper template. It was quick, easy and under $30 bucks.


It has been well received and worn out in public. There have been requests from random folks he's met for additional shirts. I refuse to sell them because, well the elements of the design are not my own. But there has been talk of trade...and that I'm cool with.


I also made an illusion scarf. Can you see the skull design? You can only see it in certain angles...cool hugh?


And the blazer socks for valentines day.


They were a day late...but only because we did a big family event on Saturday. Can you guess what we did? ....MONSTER JAM 2009!!!!....


I'll be the first to say that it was fun although I seriously had my doubts. I mean, come on. A monster truck show? But the kids loved seeing big 'ole trucks crush the itty bitty cars. I think my lungs are still clearing out the exhaust...

We have been lucky enough to have a few chilly but sunny days. Blake has this renewed interest in bike riding, so we bought her a new helmet and she's been off.


I am now resolved to buy my own bike. I imagine family bike rides to the library and around St. John's. I can't wait until spring!

Dog Park Trouble.

Yesterday at the dog park, Noro tripped and tumbled. When he got up he couldn't put any weight on his left front leg. Chris rushed him to the vet and Noro was given an anti-inflammatory shot. We'll know in a couple of days the extent of the damage. Oh it breaks my heart to see our beautiful newfie hurt

We are doing our best to keep him in a restful state. Giving him lots of love and making sure someone is near him at all times.

I feel like we aren't doing enough. For sure we are banning the dog park in lieu of long walks from now on. Something we should have done sooner considering the health problems associated with the Newf. I guess all we can do now is wait and see.

All together now...gentle mental hug for Noro. **HUG**