Knitting, ringworm, nurses, and pink frilly things

Well, I armed myself with some needles, yarn, and a copy of Knitting for Dummies and I Can't Believe I'm Knitting. I've been practicing, creating untidy little swatches for the cats to play with. I am at last catching on to the basics.

I would not, by the way, recommend I Can't Believe I'm Knitting, which someone recommended on Amazon. It's okay for learning the knit stitch and the purl stitch, but it's starter project involves two colors of yarn! I can barely handle one. Knitting for Dummies takes the by far better approach of having you practice making ribbing, seed stitches and bobbles and all sorts of things. Later you can use your swatches in a project.

I think I still want to take a class.

Other news: Daycare called me yesterday to tell me Firecracker has ringworm and I should take her away for medical intervention. So I had to take her to the pediatrician this morning, who rolled her eyes and told me that daycares and schools overeact to everything, and just slap on some Lotrimin and a bandage and trot her right back to daycare. Oh, and no need to burn the bedding. Whew.

Firecracker's asthma is also acting up. She coughs like an old man. So we went through a round of prednisone, which made her a shade tetchy. Given that she's already pretty fiery, that week was not exactly pleasant.

DramaQueen is gearing up for the end of year recital. She's in a drama class and gets to play a sprite or something like that in Sleeping Beauty, which is going to mishmash all the dance and drama classes together into one performance. No doubt they've had to manufacture all sorts of roles to cover the whole academy. I'm happy to say that for the 60 dollars we had to shell out, the costume is very pretty and guaranteed to entertain the cats. The academy is wise to not to hand them out ahead of time. We've only been allowed to see a picture. Last weekend DramaQueen asked me why the academy's gift shop only sold stuff for ballerinas. The shop is full of pink dance skirts, pink t-shirts, pink filmy scarves, pink bags to hold ballet shoes, pink poodles, tiaras, china tea sets, and fairy dust (overpriced glitter). Firecracker sussed out a backpack with a train on it. It's the kind of shop that makes you want to go out an buy a chemistry set and some monster trucks for your girls to play with. I admit, though, that every week I look at the jewelry with a covetous eye. It's exactly the sort of place I would have pitched a tantrum in as a little girl, insisting that I had to have the china tea service. And the fairy wand.

Dear Husband has decided to see if nursing is in his future. This is what comes of doing unexpectedly well in math, which he was convinced would defeat him. He has decided to sally forth and conquer Anatomy and Physiology and Chemistry to see how he likes it. Dear Husband is a very proactive sort, so he has already put in his application to a nursing school, joined an online student nurses group, and signed up to volunteer at a hospice.

Meanwhile, I don't seem to have a spiritual life. I pray, or rather, chatter, to God, but I can't say that I take much time for contemplation. Well, for me contemplation is just one step away from sleep.