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June 30, 2006

in the dawghouse

Oh! For a camera. If I had a camera then I could show you, among other things, besides Marcel in his adorable splendor, which you have some idea, but never enough reminders of, but really! I could show you the most delicate and perfect tiny pink rose, blooming in the backyard, here at the Big Dawg's house. It is surrounded by rosebuds, equally perfectly pink, its like the most ridiculous painting ever, and its hard to believe it isn't fictional. To sit in a garden of roses, vines, lilies, hanging pots of all manner of flowers, a small city of birdhouses, a swan shaped pot overflowing with multicolored leaves on a perfect summer morning, sipping one's coffee with a small dawg lazing on one's lap, it is proof enough that one lives a charmed life. What more do you need?
Not too much, really.
This is what I think.
Well, a new knitting project might be cool. But I am rather uninspired, even though there is plenty of baby knitting that one can always do. Look out, Lucy, because I'm plotting. Not a hat, though, I promise! Word is, the Little Sprout hat has been outgrown! And our Lucy is growing like crazy even as I type.
Even as I was sitting in the garden this morning, looking at tiny green sprouts poking their way between flagstones and shubbery. And wondering where but where else will small things be seen, poking out with a will of their own, seemingly out of nowhere and under their own power, because who but who would plant tomatoes in abandoned sunny places (where narry the lowliest weed can be seen), poppies (the kind with the seeds you can put on bread, papaver somniferum the seeds of which also, and don't ask how I know this, or why, and don't try it at home for gods sakes, contain enough opium that the seed pods, ground in a coffee grinder, can be used to make a lovely headache relieving tea) and also cosmos, pink ones, and what else? What else? Well, don't tell anyone but if you happen to see cherry-chocolate dark-red colored, large ornamental sunflowers blooming, not so soon but hopefully soon enough, against a pink wall, or maybe somewhere else? Along a chainlink fence, perhaps.
Well, you'll know some guerilla gardening has happened there too.

Meanwhile, its also nice to go to the library and read shamelessly for hours, not even watching the clock. I have gathered a supply of reading material which is intended for beach reading. Because if Bethany Beach, DE isn't under water, which is doesn't seem to be, then I will be joining the Helpy-Chalks there soon, very soon! And am hoping to decide on a new knitting project to bring, to work on as I wear the last finished project, the pink Chickami, which fits like a glove. Photos soon, really.
I am also trying to teach myself crochet, we'll see. The thing is I really want to make cute little animals and whatnot. Really, really, really. I got Hip To Crochet out of the library and think I will attempt a hat first. Not for Lucy, for me. :)

Tonight is the Critical Mass ride, will I make it? Its unclear, as I have been working to make the notorious Big Dawg Bachelor Pad fit for female habitation. Its coming along.

Posted by pippypippy at 01:08 PM | Comments (1)

June 26, 2006

argh.

Ok, let me get this out of the way.
The next person who describes me as shy, or vulnerable, or in need of some mysterious thing which they feel they are being asked to provide, and for some mysterious reason can't, or needy in general, or in need of an occupation (this last being especially troublesome, but its all troublesome), will get their arm ripped off and fed to them.
And whoever first uttered the phrase "he's just not that into you" I hate that person in such a firey and passionate way that they may well spontaneously combust (Bro, I don't mean you, I know you were trying to be helpful). The more likely scenario at this point is that I will spontaneously combust. No, it will be a good thing.

The thing is people lie in these situations and you don't really need to know the truth because all that matters is, yep, they're just not that into you.
Believe it.
Oh, its happened before and it will happen again.
I'm thinking too much and I need to go to bed.
Someday very very soon I will write a happy blog again, and delete all this mess and put up pictures of Marcel instead. You'll see.
The 2nd Chickami's almost done. And its pink. See? Happy.

Posted by pippypippy at 10:16 PM | Comments (3)

June 19, 2006

Li'l sprout hat!

Here is the newest preemie hat in Lucy's wardrobe!

I think she like it.

Lucy and Daddy, hangin out together on Father's Day.

All of Lucy's hats!

The update~ our girl has topped 3.5 lbs. and is gaining all the time!
Her appearance is visibly rounder. Also, I'm told she spends minutes at a time with her eyes open, although she was sleeping when I visited on Sunday. I did see quite a bit of her tiny ear, which, I'm told is also visibly rounder, having been somewhat pointy before.

Posted by pippypippy at 08:22 PM | Comments (0)

June 18, 2006

He's here!

Did you hear it, on Wednesday?? That curious thumping sound coming from the general direction of Brooklyn? Can it be?! Please give a warm Knit-A-Log welcome to the newest member of the Dogs Steal Yarn family, Thumper!!! Go and behold the cuteness and the hair! The hair!!

Posted by pippypippy at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)

June 13, 2006

both feet in Babyland

And the preemie hat knitting continues unabated~

Lucia models the latest color trend, we like to call it Dreamsicle, or is it a Creamsicle?? Whichever it is, you have to admit, you wanna eat it up with a spoon.
Speaking of which, while spoons are still a ways off in Lucy's future, there is a bit of news to report! Yes, our Featherweight Champion of the World is tipping the scales at over 3 pounds, for the first time! And gaining! (the crowd goes wild!) We are so proud.
And plus, look at the li'l pinkie. Look at it! How can it be?? So tiny.

In other news, yesterday morning I looked after the Small and Round 9- month-old son of a friend. Oh, do go and look at the art, because its an experience not unlike you are skipping amongst the happy clouds, or drinking bubble tea, or petting small fluffy bunnies, wearing bunny slippers and falling in love with flowers all around your head. Oh the sheer unbridled sweeeetness of it all! Now try to imagine a child derived from this world and you will see him! We call him A, short for his real Japanese name which no one seems to want to pronounce, which, in fact, some ladies at the playground seemed to think was Horatio, when I said it. Its not even! Not even close! But for our purposes, A works fine, and he didn't blame those ladies, just looked at them, stoically, as is his custom.
He is a rather serious and yet easygoing little (I think I hurt my back carrying the dude upstairs for his nap! He's 20-some pounds of cuteness, little in the scheme of things! Small and Round, indeed!) chap, and rarely fussy- only when sleepy, as far as I could tell- with a sweet-serious expression, fast little hands (particularly where sweet-potato baby food is involved, and cabinets that can be opened to reveal the wonders of tupperware which makes a splendid thunking noise when tossed on the floor, and also things of applesauce which can be tipped over for easier tabletop finger-painting access. Oh, and my cellphone, which can be made to beep. Over and over. Yes!) and a quiet curiosity towards the outside world. Here is what we did, while Daddy and Mommy were at work~
•ate
•chased the cats around
•sang Willy Was A Whale (Pippy) {clickety-click on the new album to see the illustration of the wonderous freeekbike with training wheels!}
•napped/knitted (more preemie hat madness, of course)
•watched Aunt Pippy try to get the diaper bag into the bottom of the stroller. Watched Aunt Pippy decide we could go to the park without the diaper bag because it was only around the corner and thus jettison the diaper bag.
•went to the coffee place. Annoyed embittered single women by our very presence. (this was a very interesting social experiment. Now I have sensed hostility from the other side of the stroller! The looks we got! Believe me, I know about this! Oh ladies, ladies, if you only knew! I smiled apologetically ~not that there was anything to apologize for, as A's manners are impeccable, and the stroller rather modest in size~ it was all very edifying indeed.)
•went to the park, played on the swings, watched the other kiddies and sang our ABCs with the little girl one swing over.
•nibbled some scone crumbs-A., and chomped a scone-Pippy, on a park bench, and shared with some pigeons.
•walked around the block a couple times.
•went home and ate again, played with my bike helmet, which is, apparently, endlessly fascinating.
•Danced a little dance because Daddy came home!

Lest we forget, my own baby! Ah yes, on the way home we went by and dropped off a new bag of Hund-N-Flocken for Marcel, who also danced, a little dance of delight. All three of us dawgs went for coffee, Marcel getting the place of honor on the tabletop, an auspicious place from which to observe dawg traffic on Lincoln Ave., and smile down at passers-by, and have them smile back, indeed. Then we visited Lucy the Spaz (not to be confused with Lucy the Human, Lucy the Spaz is a boxer-dawg), and shared our cookies from the Hot Dog Lady.
The other news is, our very own Marcel Duchamp is unofficial Physical Therapy Helper Dawg to John's mom, Norma, who is recovering from surgery. Yes, photos of his smiling dawg face are said to have been posted in the physical therapy room, for added inspiration and cheerfulness. We couldn't be more proud! And hope Norma is feeling much better soon, very soon!

Posted by pippypippy at 06:53 AM | Comments (1)

June 08, 2006

Sheer unbridled cuteness (hold onto your hats!)

(the white thingie on the hat is a reflection off the lid of Lucy's spa unit. If you look carefully you can also see Daddy with the camera, at least I could.)
We're very proud because Lucy has found her fingers and promptly learned to stick them in her mouth. I'm told I was a persistant and tenacious thumb-sucker as a child, and would not allow the thumb to be used for any other purpose, even hand-holding. The all-important digit would be held aloft, so as to remain untainted.

Posted by pippypippy at 08:26 AM | Comments (2)

June 06, 2006

happy eyeballs!

Yesterday I saw the eye doctor, he was a little blurry up close, but he informed me that my eyeballs are not bleeding! Hourah! Big, big thanks to the (Big) Seeing-Eye Dawg for guiding me home safely as usual! It was such a relief that we went and got Marcel and it was 3 dawgs in the dawg bed, with the Medium and Little Dawgs napping for some time, the Big Dawg reading a book, you betcha. There is nothing quite like napping, Marcel stretched in full Long Dawg Position, we two pressed against eachother on the Green Sleeping Bag of Happiness, lengthwise for happy happy brain.

In general, it was a good dog day yesterday, having patted 2 greyhounds, one some other kind of hound (of dubious origin!), who was moaning outside Beans and Bagels, as his human had tied him up temporarily, and plus meeting up with Hank, the 8 month old Boston Terrier in the parkles. (Unfortunately no camera on us at the time!) "We have a Boston!" we said. Hank was of course spazzing out. Your dog will calm down someday, we said, and grow into his head. Just give him about 4 years on the calming down thing. Ha! Hank was very very cute, but here is what I saw on Bryn Mawr, a Chihuahua in a dress. Yes. A dress. With cherries printed on it. She also had nail polish (light orange) and a shiny red collar with rhinestone letters spelling out SWEET. Omg. No camera! No camera when I need it most!! Tragique.

Ok, enough dawggy stuff, already, is anyone still reading!?
A CCM rider, Brian M., posted this really nice video about why you should ride your bike to work, (promoting the Chicago Bike Federation and Bike to Work Week June 10th-16th) The soundtrack is fun, and of course who doesn't enjoy a dizzying helmet-cam tour through city streets for boosting the adrenalin?
Its a little more sexy than Al Gore's Powerpoint presentation, although, if you are at all concerned about drowning polar bears, as I am, (and you may have to avert your eyes, as I did, during an animated sequence illustating just why the polar bears are drowning- its harrowing) and enjoy having the pants scared right offa you by bar graphs and whatnot, you'll dig it. The Gore thing, I mean. Plus, the theater was packed, packed! Thus we sat down in front and saw Albert Gore, Jr.'s talking head (honestly, the way he's put on a couple pounds, I might have not cropped him so close to the chin.) the size it would be on Mt. Rushmore. That is, if Mt. Rushmore weren't going to be encased miles below the ice before they finish carving him. Ha.
Oh, do go see it! Really.

Posted by pippypippy at 07:56 AM | Comments (0)

June 04, 2006

yesterday was

An excellent day to be a little dawg.

Posted by pippypippy at 04:43 AM | Comments (0)

June 03, 2006

a girl needs the proper accessories

When she's kickin' it at the crib.

Luckily she gotta new hat with a jaunty pom-pom, the perfect shade of pea-green for a summer's day.

Knitted expressly for her, with love, you betcha. By doting spinster Aunt Pippy, from a very small amount of Dale of Norway Baby Ull, oh, how we love the Baby, and the Baby Ull! On size 1 dpns, yes, its a teeny-tiny magical world, the world of the teeny tiny! We like it.

Lucy is also able to be fed itty-bitty amounts of formula, which is why she has a tube in her mouth. Word is she has gained some ounces (ounces! Amazing!) and will soon be ready to try being bottle fed. She also has been known to suck on a pacifier! Ah yes, its all these little proud moments! They do one's heart so much good. These plus running the tip of an index finger gently across a wrist bone and feeling the mirror image, writ microscopically, of my brother's arm shape, and my own. We are related! And there it is in 3 living, breathing dimensions. My. It is more miraculous than one ever imagines it could be.

Here she is without her eyeshades, in her splendor~

Baby and Mommy!

Posted by pippypippy at 12:42 PM | Comments (1)