Sometimes when I ask Michael how his day at work was he says “It went.” That pretty much sums up life in the Stewart household lately. Michael is feeling under the weather, I’m doing my usual stuff, Damian is his usual self, though he is teething (teething biscuits rock.) He did figure out a brand new baby trick today, he pushed the diaper bag up to the baby gate and tried to use it to give himself a boost across it. 7 1/2 months old and he already has his goals set on escape artist. Having children is an adventure!

I have been working on expanding my knitting skills. My mother-in-law brought by my birthday gift the other day, almost every single thing was orange. My heart sings! Orange cotton yarn, orange dusting cloths, orange glasses and pitcher! As well as a few knitting patterns for washcloths and two books, a cookbook and Chicken Soup for the Mother’s Soul. I am halfway through one of the washcloths.

I found some really soft (non-orange) yarn while I was looking for my sketchbook today and am tempted to make a baby blanket for Raveness’s upcoming bundle of joy. Who says all baby items have to be in muted pastels (unless she says so. Rule #1: The pregnant woman is always right. Rule #2: If the pregnant woman is wrong refer to Rule #1.)

My father-in-law tagged me for a meme on Facebook today and since he has never done that before, I thought I would oblige. Or try to, coming up with 25 unique factoids about me could take some time.

Rules: read, enjoy, then have a merry day.

OR the Original Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people (more or less) to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you. — choose the rule you like best

1. I love orange. This should be decently obvious by now. I think it is one of the most under-appreciated colors out there. Orange peel is my favorite shade but I love all shades of orange as long as they do not venture to far into the realm of yellow. I also love white and green.
2. I never thought I would like children, much less want one. When I met my husband I knew I wanted children, funny how things can change.
3. I have Seasonal Affective Disorder which is just a fancy term for getting the winter blues. I prefer to say winter blues, it sounds less intimidating. Or SAD because that is the greatest acronym ever. Except maybe for GNU.
4. I also have dsylexia. I reread everything I type 5 or 6 times in a special way I learned in therapy to weed out errors. I still make mistakes of course, but I don’t feel stupid when I do anymore.
5. I would almost exclusively dress in floor length patchwork skirts all the time if I could. Jeans are a lot more practical with a baby though.
6. A lot of people think I am a geek because of all my websites and because I use Linux. In reality I am lucky I can find my way around a keyboard. Michael does all the techie stuff. My unofficial “job” is to break what he creates so that he can find the bugs.
7. I love the way my son smells.
8. After I left home I barely talked to my mother for about for two years. Now we talk regularily and and I think it is fantastic.
9. I am an intensely spiritual realistic and optimist person. It always amazes me when people find those terms to be mutually exclusive.
10. I intend on homeschooling my son and any other children I have. I feel I can do a much better job then the American school system and I am not worried about them being unsocialized since I meet people easily.
11. Except in the case of medical necessity I am strongly opposed to the use of formula. I tend to keep my opinions on it to myself though because I know how easily people get offended and I prefer to avoid arguing.
12. I generally feel that people use too many negatives to define themselves. (I don’t like yellow rather then I love orange.) It seems easier to focus on what we lack rather then what we are grateful for.
13. I try to always speak from a place of wholeness and love. No one was ever ever won over by anger and fear. That said sometimes my mouth goes faster then my mind.
14. I think Damian is starting to try to say Mama, but it might be in my head.
15. For some reason it really annoys some people that I can love without liking.
16. I sing when I am alone. I make up songs constantly.
17. I am learning to read music for the first time in my life as well as how to play instrument (the keyboard.) I wish I had learned as a child, I think it would have been easier, both to learn and find time.
18. I love music that makes me feel and books that make me think. On the flip side I love violent action flicks with little plot, as well as zombie movies. (There are a few exceptions to that though, I love movies with fantastic soundtracks, like A Walk To Remember, City of Angels and Donnie Darko.)
19. I also like M. Night Shyamalan’s movies.
20. I have been a very active dreamer since I was a child. I still remember vivid dreams I had as young as age six. I even sleepwalk, though not since Damian was born.
21. I try to avoid using the verb “to get”, I prefer “to receive” or “to understand”.
22. I am very much a DIY person, from making my own bread and pasta beginning with grinding my own wheat, to learning to knit and sew, I find it much more rewarding to accomplish something like that on my own.
23. I love camping, especially in places where I can see the Milky Way, that would be all the fire I needed if I wasn’t so fond of Michael’s cobbler.
24. Sometimes I feel like my body is too small for my soul. Sometimes I randomly feel filled with this amazing awakening flowing energy that wants to explode out of me in beautiful radiant light. I use to think it was the holy spirit.
25. I respect those who oppose me, they are my greatest teachers.