Of Sticks and String and Fairy Wings

That sounds so very poetic, but really I'm just trying to come up for air to get a few thoughts put into words. Those fairy wings are cute though. I do love being an Auntie. Anyway, I know I've been busy, so maybe writing things down will help me figure out what I've' been so busy doing.

• I went completely off the deep end and spent a whole hour and fifteen minutes on....myself. A week ago Tuesday I got a new summer hairdo and a pedicure with bright pink polish. I had the startling realization that THIS is why I'm overweight. Not because I had too much hair and naked toenails, no I wish it were that simple. It's because I just don't take time for myself. It was weird to just sit there with my feet in the tub and not think about anything. ( I had decided not to bring anything I thought I "should" be doing, like listening to my book club book or working on my seminary lesson.) I just sat and chatted with the lovely young man tickling my feet. Sheesh. How many times do I have to have this "revelation" before I start to eat breakfast and sleep instead of taking care of every other moving thing that crosses my path before I do the most basic things for myself. This awakening has been pretty sobering to me, so maybe this is "The one." I have been drinking my water and going to bed at 11 whether I'm done for the day or not (that's the main reason I haven't been blogging. I don't seem to have the same quality of ideas before 11 pm. So, you're stuck with the 9:45 drivel.) But then, maybe my blogging will be happier, no so vampiric, if I do it earlier. The little red line is telling me that vampiric is not a word but I'm keeping it anyway.
• I've had 3 fun photo shoots to proof and another dress to finish that got more complicated due to my niece's incredibly thin-like-a-supermodel body. I'm not joking. She is 6 feet tall and about 4 inches wide. But it all worked out. I'll put pictures up as soon as I get them off my phone and my sister's phone. All that work also took place during my usual blogging times, so there you go. I have one last dress to go and then I'm really done. I thought two had to be done by last weekend, but happily only one did so I could get to the photos.
  
• It was MD Sheep and Wool Festival weekend. I worked at that all afternoon both Friday and Saturday. I judged the knitting and then taught some classes. If you are thinking, "What the heck is the MD Sheep and Wool Festival???" well, first of all you should set aside the first Saturday in May next year and then on that day you should go to the Howard County Fairgrounds and see for yourself. It is a really fun gathering of all things sheepy, from actual animals to yarn to spinning, knitting and weaving demonstrations, classes and shops to wonderful music, interesting people and yes, lamb for eating. I said all things sheepy. There are hundreds of vendors of everything from yarn and related items to brooms and baskets. I bought a handmade broom and some handwoven dishtowels. I love using handmade things in my everyday work. It is the largest festival of its kind in the country and people come from all over the nation to be here. See, and you thought that living in Maryland was boring. We're FAMOUS!!!
• My darling and only daughter had her 14th birthday on Sunday. I love her so much-she is just a great girl when she's not being a completely normal and frustrating teenager. We are so laid back about birthdays-we buy presents all year long-whenever the mood strikes us and we find just the right thing, so there is not a lot of formal celebration. I do make them breakfast in bed and she liked that. We were going to do our family party, but my sweet sister-in-law was driving here from CA and got stuck in that awful MAY snowstorm in Rawlings, Wyoming and wasn't going to be here in time, so Sara opted to wait until next Sunday for the cake and candles. I had a weird backache on Sunday so I stayed home from church and ended up sleeping the whole time, then my brother (husband of the stranded one) came over for dinner and the completion of our week-old scrabble game, which ended up being a brand new game which was a shame because Phil brilliantly wrapped last week's game in plastic wrap to bring it over here and got it successfully unpacked, then it got bumped by Evan while setting up and we had to start all over.
  
• Yesterday, Alex finally made it and she and the kids spent a really fun afternoon over here unwinding after being in the car for, like, 3 weeks. No, it was only days, but I know it felt like weeks to all of them.
• Johnathan has been putting the finishing touches on his missionary application and will submit them sometime next week. Hopefully he'll go out this summer or fall.

So now we come to Tuesday and it is already time for bed. So I will go. After all, I'm the only me I've got for heaven's sakes.