I don't have a photo of Ed and Lori or Rocco and Kathleen but the six of us were together over the weekend. Rocco and Kathleen live next door to us (in the house Mr. Honey grew up in) and Lori and Ed live next to Rocco and Kathleen. The six of us were together because Rocco and Kathleen were married on Saturday and the four us were fortunate enough to be invited to the nuptials.
First, they had a Ukrainian wedding - (think My Big Fat Greek Wedding almost) and we had to stand the whole two hours for the wedding ceremony. There are parts to the service. First the betrothal, then the vows, then the crossing of hands, then the crowning, then the walk, then the blessing and I'm sure I'm leaving something out. But it was a beautiful service. I have to confess that somewhere in hour two I said to God, I bet they're still legally married if I sit for a second. Sure enough they are.
And then the party.
I don't know what it was - maybe because it wasn't family - but we got on the dance floor. Mr. Honey says he has no rhythm but I made him go out for one dance - The Electric Slide - and I am here to say that Mr. Honey give credence to the stereotype about white men dancing. He truly has no rhythm but he has a lot of heart and he tried his best.
I also drank more that evening that I will do in the next year to come. Mr. H. said I was buzzed and we stayed later than we usually do at these things. I think it wasn't so much that it wasn't family but the crowd itself was older and so we were a bunch of old people out on the dance floor. No young folk to show us up. There were no children at the reception. There were some younger folks but no little kids that I could see. We sat at the same table and had a great time with the other five folks at our table (yes, it sat nine) who were friends of the bride's family.
I don't know if this contributed to my drinking more than usual but while I would not say I was drunk - I had all my wits about me - the next day I felt like I was hit by something on wheels.
On the heels of having cocktails at dinner on Thursday and Friday, the whole weekend was a lost weekend - but really fun. In the end, it was a great day and we wish Rocco and Kath the very best of God's blessings and to stand on the faith of the Lord as they continue through life together. And we are grateful that we have friends for neighbors and neighbors for friends.
On the other hand, I am knitting a scarf. I tried doing the afghan and it was giving me fits because the flowers are coming out crappy and I had to rework them so I need something I can conquer before I go back there...but I will go back there. In the mean time I 
am working on this: I am using the Misti Alpaca for it and since I spent some $17.50 a ball for it, I should either use it or invest it so this would seem to be a nice lacy project for it and since the suggested needle size for the fiber are size 7 needles and the project (from here) says it also should be made on size 7 needles, I'm thinking this is a good thing. I'm using hand painted color - can I just say I am not a fan of 'colorway' I have no idea why we need it. Anyhow, it's in shades of green. Despite the smallish needle size and the not quite worsted weight, this should be a relatively quick knit and I am looking forward to seeing the scarf fall off from the needles.
In the interest of full disclosure, I should also say I have started another granny square afghan (I was daydreaming of crocheting granny squares in black, grey and white so that's what I'm doing. What? I'm following the dream.) It requires 80 squares and I already have 30 done. I swear, I will get back to the other afghan and yes, I am using the yarn I was supposed to use for that one but it will all work itself out.
Have faith.
Mr. Honey and I are in the midst of celebrating our 14th wedding anniversary. The actual date was two days ago but we decided to celebrate today - except our plans were delayed. We wanted to go to Miller's Pub, a restaurant downtown where our beloved nephew, Matt, is a waiter. But Matt called to say he didn't have to go in today and we want to leave him the big tip so we are going tomorrow when he will be on duty.
So, 14 years ago today we were in Toronto because we wanted to leave the country for our honeymoon - I don't really think that was the reason, I think I wanted to go to the other country that was attached to this one. Been to Mexico so that left our neighbors to the north, eh.
Now the thing to do would be to post a wedding photo or one of the honeymoon but that would mean pulling out the albums and the proofs and selecting one and scanning it and...just take my word for it - we're legally married.
My brother performed the ceremony and I kept asking him - during the ceremony - if he was sure he was ordained. This was his first wedding and I wanted to make sure there were no loop holes. After the service was over, I asked him if Mr. Honey and I were actually married at that moment or if there was that three day waiting thing that people get. Married. Totally. From the moment he announced it to the world.
I made the point after we exchanged vows to inform Mr. Honey that now it would take an attorney.
Before you think I was a total spaz at the altar, I should tell you that when my brother was taking Mr. Honey through his vows he said: "Repeat after me, I, Mr. Honey, take you Beverly to be my lawfully wedded wife." And Mr. Honey said...
Nothing.
OK not quite. He said , "Uh..."
I swear someone in the audience said, "Oh, oh..."
My brother said, "Not sure?"
Mr. Honey said, "I didn't hear you."
Yeah, because my brother was standing so damn far away.
My brother said, "You want me to repeat it?" (As opposed to what?)
"Yes, please."
So my brother repeated it..slowly..and Mr. Honey said the words and the show went on.
And it's been going on ever since. Considering I never imagined me getting married, I'm blown away it's still going.
As far as marriages go, this one is pretty good. It isn't perfect - I could be so much better as a wife - but every morning when I wake up I ask myself if I want to be married that day. And there hasn't been a day when I didn't want to be married to that guy. Two of my favorite words: my husband.
We have a lot of fun and there are hardly any arguments - nothing to argue about really. No mortgage. No kid at home. His family lives close enough we can see them regularly but not so close that I feel they are in our business. Life is pretty good. Marriage is even better.
Happy anniversary, Mr. Honey. I'd do it all over again in a second.
Still don't have a photo of Robert & Laura but what else is new? There was a very cute, touching moment. Let's set it up with starting at the rehearsal:
Laura was practicing the vows and she and her mom started crying - during the rehearsal. We all laughed and said they were getting it out of their systems and they would be fine the next day when it really counted. (Why doesn't it count during the rehearsal? I mean, it happened the exact same way - one would think it would count. It was said in front of folks and the promises were made. Just something to think on.)
Anyway, we got to the big day. I was nervous singing (my music shook for the first few bars - something my music director was happy to point out to me.) I digress. We got to the part where she was saying her vows - this time for real - and she broke down in tears - I mean they could have used that water in a California brush fire. Tears were everywhere. She barely got out the first line and she had to stop.
The minister told her to take her time. Her mother, from her seat, called out 'Just breathe, honey.' We called the Kleenex folks for backup. The service came to a halt while we waited her out. And while she was pulling herself together, she squeaked out, clear for everyone to hear:
"This doesn't mean no!"
That knocked us all out. It took another moment or two, but she came through like a woman who wasn't going to leave without her man. When it came time for Robert, he had to hold a rather tight grip on his tear ducts as well but he came through without another rain delay.
After the service, when I saw them in the narthex, I walked up to them and said: "You know you'll need a lawyer now."
Cuz I'm supportive like that. I said that to Mr. Honey when we were at the altar. And he looked at me and said: 'That won't be necessary.'
For Robert and Laura, for Lily and Jeremy - I pray it won't be necessary for them, either.
033104
To follow up on the bird that flew into the house on Thursday.
I thought it would be a good idea to have Duke (the dog) scare the bird into leaving the house. But Duke was grossly uninterested in the bird. I don't even think he bothered looking at it. All Duke wanted was to play outside.
I thought, I'll go get my haircut, leave Duke with the bird, he'll get interested in the bird and when I come back, the bird will be knocking on the door to get out. Nope, went to get my hair cut, was back in about 45 minutes and the bird was in the kitchen window and Duke was at the door saying "I still want to go outside. and oh, when did we get a bird?"
The bird was in the kitchen and I was trying to figure out what to do when I prayed to God to help me out. As soon as the prayer was over, the bird flew into the living room where I was and sat on the t and v. I went into the dining room and opened the french door that leads to the outside and I waited outside for the bird to get a clue.
Then the phone rang. I thought maybe it was Mr. Honey but it was Mike, my music director, saying he needed to be picked up at the train station so we could go to the rehearsal. I picked up the phone and took it outside with me and as we were talking, the bird flew from the t and v to the back of the easy chair and finally out of the door.
Thank you, God.
The wedding was lovely and there was a really touching, funny moment, but it deserves its own spot, not one shared with a stinky bird and uninterested dog in my house. So, I will share that moment with you later. But let it suffice for the moment that it was a lovely wedding - a far cry from the 'just do something on the beach' they were talking about having. It was traditional and lovely. And they did some really fun things at the reception I'll tell you about, too!
God is good.
033004
Here they are: Mr and Mrs Cotton-Schmidt. It's a strange and wonderful thing to think I saw this little creature when they brought him home from the hospital. I have fed him, changed his diapers, took him on outings with just the two of us even disciplined him once in a very great while and now he is grown up and has a wife of his own and who knows, I could be asked to babysit his child one day. (Which I will do because I can return the kid, spoiled, at the end of the day.)
In truth, I don't think I've ever seen him happier than he was on Saturday. You would expect a couple to be happy on their wedding day, and they certainly were, but knowing some of what he's gone through, I was grateful that he was happy. That he could find his own happiness. I am grateful he knew it was out there for him to find. And he did find it. Lily is very lovely inside and out. She is a great compliment to him and a great partner for him. She'll keep him in line.
I wish my parents were here. My father would be happy because Jeremy is the first son of a son. My mom would be over the moon because she loved her some Jeremy but she would be thrilled because Lily is the daughter of a minister. So where Lily couldn't keep him in line; Jesus will take over.
There are other photos to share from the wedding including the crazy family I come from (and Lily is now stuck with) and photos of Mr. Honey and me but for right now, this is still their moment.
Today is the day my nephew is getting married. I was with my brothers and one of my sisters, two nephews and two sisters-in-law until about 12:30 this morning. Talk about synergy, they are staying in the hotel where I spent the night before and my wedding night. Things have come full circle.
The bags Mr. Honey brought home cannot be used as gift bags because they have big-ass GLAD written across them. So they make great storage bags, but not gift bags. I looked up the bags I wanted and found them at two stores - one close to the house, so I tooled over there yesterday to find they have them on line but not in the store. The place that has them in the store is down the street from the hotel where my family is staying so we will shoot over there before we meet up for brunch. Hopefully I will find them in stock or I am going to have tie up the wedding afghan with a pretty bow and stick it in a gift bag.
I don't have photos yet - but I am taking my camera with me and I am hoping to take photos - I have been given that order by my eldest sister who could not make the trip - she said to remember all the details but I'd rather have some pics or the blog - you should see the folks I've been talking about - including Mr. Honey.
Remember I said yesterday was going to be a good day? It was. I still think about the troubles but they are nothing compared to the joys and it should be the joys that run the river. It is a joy that there is a technology that brings family from Colorado, Arizona, Maryland and Illinois into one place in just a matter of hours.
It is a joy to find two people who are so excited about finding each other that they want to say to each other and the world: This is my beloved. This is the one that I choose to be with no matter how long my life lasts. No matter what paths open before me. No matter what my past has been. This is the way I will go and this is the one I trust my pain and my happiness to. This is the one who's happiness and pain I will take into my hands and treat them with care.
It is an special joy to understand those feelings because you feel them yourself and have someone who feels them with you and for you.
Let other people be ugly if they choose to be. That's not my problem.
Hope springs eternal.
It's going to be a great day.
Yes, yes, I snuck the photo in a posting a few days ago and the wedding is a few days away - but I am quite comfortable showing the world the big view of the wedding afghan. Because last night, I had the pleasure of speaking for the first time with my future niece, Lily.
The happy couple arrived in town and they picked up my brother (Jeremy's father) and they all called me from someone's car and I spoke with Lily and told her all about her afghan and she was appropriately excited about getting a handmade gift from someone she has never met before who could potentially load her down with weird looking knitted stuff. ("Oh look dear, another box arrived from Aunt Bev. You open it - outside.")
Actually, she sounded excited about the wedding and all that it means. I can understand the excitement - I happen to think my nephew is quite a catch. He's tall, he's handsome, he's funny and he has a host of wonderful aunts (yeah his parents are OK, too.)
They just moved into their new place and though I did not ask if I could show the afghan, I don't think they'll mind - and this gives them the chance to consider if they need to repaint to match the afghan.
I'm kidding.
I think.
There is nothing like a self argument to show yourself just how mature/immature you really are.
The Conflict:
The wedding afghan is finished. The wedding afghan is a present for my nephew and his fiancee who will be united in what I hope is wedded bliss next Saturday.
So far, nothing to argue about.
They should really be the one to 'open' the present. Therefore, I should not post a photo of the afghan here until after the wedding. Which means you guys would just have to wait until Saturday morning to see it.
But my niece to be and current nephew don't read my blog so they won't see it before they get to open it.
But still they should be the one to open it first.
They're registered at Target and some other place and everyone on the planet can pull up their Club Wed list and see what they want so it won't be such a big surprise cuz they know what they're getting, so why not post the photo here cuz they still get to open it in person and it always looks different in person than in the photo - and it always looks better in person.
But they should be the one to open it first.
Oh shut up.
No, You shut up.
Instant war.
What's the reason I want to post it now?
Cuz I want the instant gratification of seeing it on the blog and letting you see it!
Yea, that's mature.
It would be really nice if the photo was of Jeremy and Lily together with the afghan.
But then that depends on Jeremy and Lily taking a photo and getting it on line and getting it to me so I can get it on the blog. That's too many what if's for a couple that's getting married, going on a honeymoon then coming back straight to work. That's a lot to expect.
Gees, I wish I'd stop.
So, I do what I always do when I can't decide. It's one of the reason you marry - to have somebody to give you an opinion you can always ignore. Mr. Honey is sitting in his chair eating ice cream waiting for the Cubs (sigh) game to start and I ask him: should I post a photo of the afghan on the blog before they get it?
He shrugged. "Why not?"
Indeed.
030104
The wedding is nine days away! This really is a blue color. I know it looks green and it's a green color, too. I think the official name is Cape Cod Blue. I don't know what they do in Cape Cod to make their blue look like a mixture of blue and green but there's obviously enough of it done that it warrants its own color.
The stitch is called Cable Check - I should say the stitch in the book is called Cable Check. I took the liberty of adding my own style to the stitch. The pattern calls for the cable to be a cable back stitch (where you place the designated number of stitches on the cable needle and put those stitches in the back of the work until needed.)
I thought it would be infinitely more interesting to alternate - one row would be cable back, one row would be cable front.
It is more interesting. I was rather happy with the result. Not just because the pattern is more interesting, but because I followed the thought to action. I would be a little bummed if it didn't work out, but I would still be pleased that I gave the effort.
I am going to put together the third (out of four) strips. That should be motivation to get the last three (four?) squares done. I would like to reblock the entire thing when it's done just to resize it and make it softer.
This nephew of mine. I remember the day he was born. I remember the day I was told he was coming. I used to change his diapers and baby sit him and now he's getting married. He's grown into quite a kind, caring young man and from what I've seen about his fiancee, she's a great match for him. I'm glad they're getting married here, but I would have traveled the world for this day. I am thankful to have a skill that I can use to express my happiness and love for this couple as they start a new path that interweaves their lives. May God bless them both through eternity.
022504
"I was in the hospital. I was in the ICU." Annie was talking to Mrs. Carson. "Rev. Bleecker came to see me."
"I told you he was fabulous. I don't know why you can't get along with him."
Annie shook her head. "He wasn't there to pray for me. He was there to tell me that I failed to get out the newsletter."
Mrs. Carson shook her head. "You know you're the only one who doesn't like him."
The Church on Peyton Place Corner
The 
afghan is moving along. One strip is already crocheted together and the next one has three of five blocks on it. There are two more blocks on the blocking board just waiting to be added to the pile. There are nine strips on the pile which would be about two more strips. This looks like it's the most complicated stitch in the bunch but it's the one that move along quite easily. I think I got it done in a matter of hours. That's because it's mostly k and p with some togs and yo's thrown in, but not very many. It's called the Tree Bud Stitch and it is the centerpiece of the afghan. There are only four strips so it can't be directly in the center, so it will be the third block on the strip. It's really quite lovely in person. It's a royal blue and very soft.
It's ten days to the wedding. The countdown is on. How many days (or even hours) will I have to spare?
It is a terrible thing to have to end a relationship - even if you knew it wasn't the relationship you thought you had. But then, it's a wonderful thing to discover support where you never thought you'd find it. Everything has a trade off.
So, here's the next stitch...well, not the next next stitch. It's the next stitch that I photographed and posted. OK, let me just take back the earlier gripe I made about the stitches not being easy. This one was easy too. But seriously, there are some stitches that are more complicated than others. I am sure there are. I haven't run into them yet - I was just blowing off because the one stitch I was working on was giving me trouble...wait....see? I told you! Some were more complicated! But I still take back the gripe because I could have been tired or not paying attention or something. The block I finished yesterday was one I started before for another project and gave up on it. This time, I paid attention and it came out looking just fine. Have I even told you 
about the zigzag stitch yet? I said it was easy and it was. There are YO's and k2togs and that's about as complicated as it gets. You will have to follow the directions cause you need to get the lace in the right order, but if you do that, you get a nice square. The yarn is a little darker than the photo shows and it's really soft after it was steam blocked.
One thing I noticed about the pile of blocks that I have amassed, they are soft and they are cool to look at. I haven't really paid attention to how they would fit together, but since I'm using the same color palette, the yarns and are the same weight and size and since they are (mostly) coming from the same source, I am letting the synergy take care of that but I admit to being pleased with what I saw. Stitch block 12 is about to go on the needles and I see the end of the tunnel. I think we'll be fine for the wedding!
I so badly want to put the picture there. I almost pulled out the camera to take some shots of what it is I want to show you and then I remembered:
It's a secret.
Well, not really, it's not a secret; it's a gift and I suppose you could announce the gift for all the world to see before you give it to the recipients; especially since it is still in the creating stage. But then that kind of messes it up for the receiver. Doesn't it? I mean, they still get it and they could check back here to see how it progresses. Anticipation could build.
Not likely.
Nope, while I can make an argument for why it would be fine to share, it boils down to this: the people who receive the gift should be the ones to open it.
Right? Oh dear.
OK, I'll tell you this much because this isn't a surprise to anyone in the family who knows I knit and I am part of the handmade movement: it's the afghan I'm making for my nephew, Jeremy, and his soon to be bride, Lily. Remember I told you Lily says her favorite color is blue - but not a baby blue a bright, bold blue? Or something like that. Well, I found a blue and bought skeins of it and then I had a brain drizzle (brain storms are just too taxing) and pulled out all the blues I could find in the stash. So the back of the love seat is lined with all these different skeins (including a baby blue) and I am making squares of different blues into an afghan for their wedding present.
The squares are turning out to be 16x12 and the only decision left to make is whether it will be a 20 or 25 square afghan. (Did I mention the wedding is in three weeks?) There are seven squares done - but I'm not panicking (much). Cool as a cuke. That's me.
Hopefully they will at least like the afghan and will send me a photo with them both snuggled in it. Then you can all see it. It will be big enough, right? You see how I worry?
Sigh.
am working on this: I am using the Misti Alpaca for it and since I spent some $17.50 a ball for it, I should either use it or invest it so this would seem to be a nice lacy project for it and since the suggested needle size for the fiber are size 7 needles and the project (from here) says it also should be made on size 7 needles, I'm thinking this is a good thing. I'm using hand painted color - can I just say I am not a fan of 'colorway' I have no idea why we need it. Anyhow, it's in shades of green. Despite the smallish needle size and the not quite worsted weight, this should be a relatively quick knit and I am looking forward to seeing the scarf fall off from the needles.
