Full Days

I've been so busy the last couple of weeks just living my life, there's been no time to blog anything about it. All good things, but lots of them. Here are some highlights:

I'd like to say that one thing keeping me busy was working in the yard since it looks like spring is here already. (Actually it was 85 degrees yesterday and felt more like summer. I keep remembering the old TV commercial that said, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!" Feels like someone has.) But gardening is not one of my talents.Thankfully I have friends who do have those talents. So last week after a large agricultural awards dinner, one friend send the table decoration home with me. The master gardeners here had arranged fresh flowers for all 40 tables that evening. 

When the weekend arrived, Baby Sister and her family came here for a couple of days. Big Sister had been chosen to represent her school at the SC Young Writers' Conference on Saturday. Baby Sister spent the day here. It was fun watching her explore. But she has reached the stage where she is constant motion. Which meant Granddaddy and I also had to be in constant motion. No rest for us. But how much fun it was to have them here!

We pulled out everything we could think of to keep her entertained. Many of the toys here are ones that belonged to our girls when they were little. 

One real treasure is the basket of wooden cars that my dad crafted. He made hundreds of cars for children. We gave many for birthday gifts--usually a plastic bin filled with lots of little cars. He's probably smiling somewhere now to think his great-grandchild is now playing with them.

And in bits and pieces and stops and starts, I managed to finish my first lace shawl yesterday. It's drying now so later today, I'll get to see what it really looks like. I know that someone is thinking "why would you knit when you say you are so busy?" And I can tell you--knitting is a quiet, calming activity. It gives me a chance to sit still and gather my scattered self. A little of the soothing repetitive motion and everything settles down. I settle down. And soon I'm ready to go again. 

There is also the music. The "gig" part of my blog title is a reference to my music activity. It's usually my ukulele band that keeps me busy. (And it still does. There is practice today. We play on Monday.) But at the moment, it's the piano that is demanding my attention. Would someone REMIND ME how much practice is required to get a piece ready before I agree to play in public again? 

This morning, I'm looking for a recipe that I can make and leave for Granddaddy to heat up over the weekend because I'm sneaking off for a tiny vacation with Jessica. Have to love a daughter who calls and says, "Mom, want to go with me to....?" 

If I find a really good recipe to make for him, I'll be sure to share.