Happy Trails

Oh, Hai!

We are pleased to introduce the newest member of our family, Jayden Ravine. I have been DYING to share this process with everyone here in this space, but there were a lot of "ifs, ands or buts" involved, and it wasn't until today that it was all a sure thing. 

We made the financial commitment back in early September of last year, and waited with fingers crossed that the litter we chose would "take". (Actually, when we reserved River, that litter didn't take, and we were able luckily to bump over to the reservation list of another litter, and so were blessed with her in more ways than one). 

Well, this litter DID take (as we found out in January), and this little guy, along with one brother and five sisters, was born on March 29, 2010. We had first pick of the boys, and decided we would make the drive down to Shalgo Farm to make our selection in person today.

We spent about an hour with all of them, and visiting with Jackie and George. After a while though, one of the little boys particularly started to grow on me.

There was a gentle energy about him, which actually is something that really attracted me to Salmaan when we first met. We also thought his energy would be a great compliment to River's. I looked at Salmaan, our eyes met, and we knew it was the right fit. We brought River with us of course (see her in the background), but interestingly, she wanted absolutely NOTHING to do with the pups. Even after we picked the little brother and tried to introduce them, she just wanted Daddy-love. I don't think she would have been interested even if we had dipped the little guy in peanut butter. That's saying something.

Jackie convinced us not to worry, and assured us that this behavior was completely normal. It was great to be able to talk to her one on one, and she was full of words of wisdom that I know will help us when little Jayden comes home.

For now, though, he's going to stay at the farm, chill out with his siblings and graduate from Puppy Kindergarten. We'll go get him in the latter half of May, and I'm sure there will be much to share when that comes to pass!

For now, I'll leave you with one more shot of that adorable little panda bear face!

 

Turn A Square For My Guy

My guy took his big test today. He called me a little bit before 1:00 p.m., tired, but feeling good. He thinks he passed, and I think he did too. He's worked really hard, studying these past few months while working a full time job. It hasn't been easy, but I know he pulled it off.

His reward? Some homemade pesto (his favorite), and a new hat. His first handknit hat ever, in fact. I didn't realize I had started so many projects for him that never came to fruition. I introduce: Turn a Square for my guy:

My guy loves some Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed. He picked these two colorways out himself, on our first visit to the Yarn Lounge. The two colors are Jewel and Bark.

 

At first I was worried that this cap would be too large, but it ended up working out really well. I knit the ribbing on #6 "16 circulars, and the body of the hat with #7 "16 circulars. He kept trying it on throughout the process--nothing is cuter than a guy with working yarn draped across his goofy smiling face, and dpns sticking out of the top of his head. His appreciation was palpable, and he's been wearing this around the house since I finished it.

Salmaan turned a pretty huge corner in his professional life today. He's on his way to becoming a licensed clinical neuropsychologist, and I'm incredibly proud of him. I love you, sweetheart. Thank you for working so hard!

Goings On...

It's been a busy couple of days, in a ton of good ways. Friday marked the end of my clerkship, and I was really pleased that I was able to get everything crossed off of my gitfd list in a timely fashion. (That's the Get It The F*ck Done list, should you be wondering). Boss presented me with a super thoughtful engraved pewter plate to memorialize my time with him, and it just felt good. That whole last week culminated in a sense of closure at a level that I've never experienced before. Moving on just felt....right.

The weekend was pretty packed as well. Hubster took me out to dinner at Ruth's Chris to celebrate my starting my career, and my GOD, it was frickin' awesome. Butter on beef? I never would have thunk it, but bring it ON. I can't wait to find another excuse to celebrate there. I also did the normal girl thing--got a haircut, bought a ton of new work clothes (nearly all of them on sale, I really lucked out), and some new shoes. I've also been wearing make-up everyday, and contrary to how I thought I would feel...I really like it. I feel more confident and professional, and now that I've gotten the hang of it, it doesn't even take me that long. (The fact that the kit came with an instructional DVD didn't hurt, AT ALL).

Sunday we put the kayaks on the river for the first time. We bought the darn things because we live so close to the James, but until this past weekend had been using them elsewhere on nearby lakes. I wanted for us to have the chance to get used to them on true flatwater before hitting the river. In short, it was a lot of fun! We both got a workout, and once we got to a place where we decided to just drift back to the put-in, it was peaceful and relaxing. We saw two bald eagles (one was chasing the other, trying to steal a fish that it had just caught in its talons), and we were able to get within eight feet of a majestic blue heron. It's definitely something we'll be doing again soon. We also noticed after breakfast on Sunday that Puppers had a boo boo. A big boo boo, on her front right elbow, the size of a darn golf ball:

Luckily it wasn't causing her any pain, and she was acting fine. Hubster was able to take her in first thing this week, and apparently it's just an abscess. The vet said she must have bumped it, and for whatever reason it got swollen and filled with...well, you know. ICKY stuff. It is now drained and on the mend, and I'm particularly pleased that we were able to take that opportunity to get her microchipped--something I've been wanting to do for months. Now I can feel more comfortable with the thought of starting to do some off-lead training.

Monday and Tuesday I had to attend a mandatory orientation for all County employees. It. Was. Painful. There was a one hour presentation/training on the use of a fire extinguisher. One. HOUR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *sigh*. What made it all the more interesting was the new Utility hire that sat right in front of me both days. He had a shaved head, and right smack in the back of his shiny dome, he had a (very detailed) tattoo of an open eye. It was green. And it stared at me, ALL DAY. When I got really bored I took my ring on and off to see if I could get a reaction from it...perhaps a fiery border? Or at least a booming voice in the dark language of Mordor? No such luck. I wish I could have taken a picture of it, but he might have killed me.

Anyway, TODAY was my first REAL day of my new job. I wore my spiffiest suit, and Boss was actually the judge that swore me in, which was really darn cool. I also got a badge, which of course made me feel way more important than I am. ;-) I normally really dislike first days, but today was definitely an exception. I like the people I work with, and I just feel....confident. Not over confident, mind you--not by any means. I just know that this is what I'm supposed to be doing right now. I know that I'm going to love it. And I know that I'm going to do a good job. Not bad for a first day. Oh, and there's a knitting class at work on Wednesday evenings. Dream job? Um...shyah....

Out With the Old, In With the New

That's the theme of this week. Friday is the last day of my clerkship. It feels so surreal right now....the last day of my first real job....It also marks the beginning of my legal career as an Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney--my dream job. I'm excited, a little sad, a little anxious, but mostly just ready to pound out the rest of the work that I have to do before Friday, which includes 3 under advisements and knitting a hat for Boss.

Wish me luck.

Oh, and wanna hear something cool? They put up my name plate outside of my new office already. I went and saw it yesterday. It looks AWESOME. ;-)

Love is...

For the sake of my non-knitting readers, explanations are provided in parentheses.

In the beginning, Love is k2tog (knit two together).

And then you get started on the most important project of your life, and while you have an idea of the pattern, you're not quite sure how it's supposed to go. You just know how you want it to look in the end. So, you write it as you go.

Sometimes Love is a yo (yarn over). And while it wasn't planned, and creates a big hole, you later realize that it makes the pattern more interesting--it adds something important, that couldn't have been achieved any other way. There is beauty in the unexpected. Love is realizing that fact.

Sometimes Love is frogging (ripping out your work) back to the yo, or whatever other mistake you made, and fixing it so that it doesn't mess up the rest of the pattern. Sometimes I think frogging is the hardest kind of Love. It takes more patience, and is never the fun part of the project, because most of the time, we all just want to move on, right? But if we leave it, we'll always see the hole, and if we're not careful, it could get bigger later. Frogging might be the most important kind of Love there is.

Sometimes the pattern requires you to pm (place a stitch marker). Like when you get a new job, or Hubster gets a raise. Maybe you've moved, or made a large purchase. Our house rules: pm's should always go hand in hand with a good bottle of wine, or a bubbly glass of champagne.

Hopefully, in a few years, Love will be M1 (make one, increase).

Sometimes Love is K1, P1 (knit one, purl one). I think this is the most steadfast type of Love. K1, P1 can be soothing, comfortable, and meditative. Sometimes we take it for granted, and realize we've made a mistake because we just weren't paying attention. Then, it's time to frog. K1, P1 can also be really monotonous and boring, and we wish the pattern were more exciting. Sometimes we rethink completing the project for that reason. But in the end, we never do. Because no matter what, we always remember that even though we started here:

This is where we wanted to end up--and lo and behold, we've gotten there.

And the big picture is even cooler than we had hoped for.

And then you realize that there are whole wardrobes full of projects to look forward to, and complete, and tons more opportunities to add to the ultimate pattern, together. As a unit. As a couple.

Hubster's Noro Striped Anniversary Scarf: 4 skiens of Noro Silk Garden, 3 different colors. #8 needles. Cast on 39. Finished dimensions, unblocked: 6 inches wide, and 6 1/2 feet long.

Years of marriage: 2 years. Happy Anniversary, sweetheart. I love you. Thank you, for loving me.

What Does It All Mean?!?!?!

I have FINALLY thrown away the Stinkers.

I am no longer worried about our savings account.

Hubster is going to schedule a dental appointment.

We ordered a Bowflex.

Hubster's new nickname for me is "M.C."

I am no longer surfing Ravelry at work--instead, I'm getting to all of the projects that I've been putting off.

We finally used the gift certificate we've been saving for months and went out to eat at La Grotta.

I now have a yarn budget.

WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?!?!?!?!

I got the job. I got the frickin' job. I start in June. I feel amazing. Just call me Madam Commonwealth!

Second Bite

Got an interview for the main office position. Thursday, May 8 @ 3:00 p.m. Cross your fingers for me. There aren't any more positions to go for in this jurisdiction after this one, so let's hope the second bite holds. How 'bout them apples?

No Dice

Well, it's almost 2:30 on Monday, and methinks I'm not going to hear about that job today. Perhaps tomorrow? Either way, I think that I probably won't be getting an offer for this position, but hopefully I'll get a call back for an interview for the position in the main office.

In other news: My boss is taking myself and our secretary out for cocktails after work at Bookbinders (swanky!) to celebrate my birthday. I frickin' love it that my birthday lasted a week this year. It doesn't get any cooler than that! Also, I got another job interview today for a prosecutor position in another jurisdiction! Not bad for a Monday. The interview isn't until mid-May, so I've got plenty of time to breathe. *Breathe*

Happy Monday.

Reap the Whirlwind

I'm a planner. I like knowing what's going to happen tomorrow...next weekend...17 months from now...on into my retirement. I'm just like that. Predictability gives me a sense of peace and order that is unsurpassed by any amount of yoga, meditation, or any other new-agey path to bliss. I may be lame, but I'm lame and HAPPY.

The last 8 days of my life have been neither predictable, nor orderly. And although that puts me about as far outside my comfort zone as possible--it has been alright. I've been alright. And good things have happened that I am excited to share with you.

• We survived the trip to Chicago. Not only that, some of it was really great! A post to follow will summarize the trip and all of its highlights.
• I am now 26 years old, and I had a wonderful birthday. Thank you for all the shout-outs! I also got some kick-ass birthday gifts--including a ball-winder and a gift certificate to my favorite yarn shop. Rock ON.
• We finally received our tax return.
• I got an interview for the job that I really want in the prosecutor's office. I called Wednesday morning, and interviewed that same afternoon. I think it went well--and I'll find out by Monday if in fact it did. The good news is that there are two positions open, so I might have two bites at the apple so to speak. Cross your fingers for me--this is BIG.
• My sister's mucus plug *ugh* (hereinafter referred to ONLY as "the baby cork") popped out last night, which means my little neice is going to be a viable, breathing little being quite shortly--and then we finally get to find out her name. I think it might be Sophia. :-)

So, we had a successful family visit, I had a great birthday, we've got cash in our pockets, there's a possibility that I might be getting the job of my dreams, and I'm almost an auntie. Not bad. Reap the Whirlwind, Baby!!!