3 Kids Crazy http://www.3kidscrazy.com/ What happens when you try and balance 3 kids, a movie obsession, a ridiculous love for books, compulsive knitting, and a FA kitchen? You gain the level of 3-kids-crazy, that's what! Copyright 2008 Fri, 01 Aug 2008 14:24:26 -0600 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.15 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Crazy Aunt Purl Ok, I'm not quite finished this one, but so far I've been quite enjoying it. I'm not divorced and I've never directed traffic with my bra on my head (not counting that one time in college....) So far it's a quick easy read that draws you into her topsy turvy life without bringing you down. I'd recommend it as a light read, but you may want to pick this one up at the library. I'm not sure I'll want to re-read this one repeatedly so it's shelf-space vs. expense is not equal.

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000084.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000084.html Reading Fri, 01 Aug 2008 14:24:26 -0600 In the Beginning There was cheese.

Oh wait.... No there wasn't.

In the beginning, there were cows.

...and sheep.

...and goats.

...and dogs.

Ok, to Americans the dogs thing might be gross. But hey, they lactate, don't they? I bet somewhere in the world they make cheese from dog's milk. Let's not be so ethnocentric, eh?

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/the_cheese_log/000081.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/the_cheese_log/000081.html The Cheese Log Thu, 15 Feb 2007 17:30:44 -0600 <![CDATA[Marley & Me]]> Last week I was at our monthly Paws for Love meeting and a friend had just finished Marley & Me. When she went home, she left it for someone else to take. Unable to resist the opportunity to not hit the hold list at the library, I took it home. It was excellent.

I do not own a yellow lab, but I do understand the whole "worst dog in the world" concept quite intimately. (Don’t we all, really?) I have also known my fair share of labs that could be Marley’s twin.

Weighing in at 304 pages, the length seems to fit perfectly. It is well paced and at no point did I find myself wanting to skip ahead or find myself completely lost. John Grogan is known for his light, personable writing with a penchant for good-hearted humor. This book is no exception. I found myself reading into the wee hours of the night (the fact that I start reading at eleven doesn’t help) and finished it in about four nights of reading. It was engaging and entertaining. Partway through I thought that I would be disappointed at the end, craving more insane-canine antics. Quite the opposite was true as I wrapped up the novel last night. Grogan did an excellent job of winding us down to the conclusion at exactly the right pace, leaving us contented to set the novel down, both nostalgic for the past and optimistic for the future.

I won’t recap the book more than this…. Young couple decides to get a dog, picks a boisterous lab, and lives with the consequences. Ok, a little more. The story follows this family’s growth as it adapts to a string of changes including starting a family. We meet Marley as a young pup bursting with way too much energy, watch him flunk out of obedience school, and finally grow old and need more human assistance. Any dog owner can relate to this story, but anyone who has lived with a less-than-perfect canine companion will find themselves flinching, groaning, laughing, and crying right alongside the Grogans.

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000079.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000079.html Reading Thu, 15 Feb 2007 16:07:27 -0600 She is sooo my daughter! Yesterday I offered Beth Ann two Size J crochet hooks to choose from. Her face lit up and she exclaimed, "I've never crocheted on a Brittany!"

Note that she can not read. She was able to recognize a Brittany needle (hook) by the packaging. I would normally point out the fabulous decorative tooling at the end as a point of rapid recognition, but she had never seen a Brittany hook before. She simply couldn't know that this was unique. She is my daughter. That is the best explanation. She just knows a good quality hook when she sees it.

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000078.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000078.html On the Needles Thu, 15 Feb 2007 15:21:59 -0600 The Ringworld Engineers http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000080.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000080.html Reading Fri, 09 Feb 2007 17:25:35 -0600 Dear Mr. Springer,
Even though you failed to mention whether this was a master suite shower, or maybe way down the hall, or even on the next floor, but none the less it kept that mohair flowing well into the wee hours of the night.

My 6 year old's sweater may never have been finished if it wasn't for exhibitionist transexuals who love the dogs that don't love them. Please forward my thanks on. In fact, give me a call when you do a follow-up show, I'd be glad to come down and thanks them ho's myself!

Sincerely, Libby]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000077.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000077.html Daily Posts Thu, 17 Aug 2006 10:18:14 -0600 A lesson in top down simplicity
No, cables did not spice it up. I was stupid enough to pick cables that are wider than the initial front collar. So I’m adding cable stitches as I go. Nope, not a good idea… this is even confusing for me…. **Riiiiiippppp**

Ok, so cables weren’t the thing. Maybe a nice seed stitch stripe just above the armpit? Ok, here I am a Jerry Springer into this thang and I’m not digging it. Something magical has occurred. The wonderous combination of texture and neon green has taken my gorgeous tweedy merino and caused it to mimic some nasty afghan from the 70’s. You know which one I’m talking about. The nasty thing made up in crazy-durable acrylic that’s hiding in the back of your closet. We all know it’s there. Don’t lie to me. **Rrrrrriiiiiippppp**

I’m on the right track now. Just a plain stockinette stitch all the way. Top-down simplicity. This will be a lesson in less is more. I can do it, yes I can!

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000076.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000076.html On the Needles Wed, 16 Aug 2006 00:46:34 -0600 Dude, that is way too much green....


I totally had a "What was I thinking?" moment when I looked into this pot. Inside was a simmering, stinking (I used vinegar since it’s what I had on hand that day) radioactive mass of fiber.

In hindsight I am very proud of myself. I did not cry. Not a single tear. I just kept stirring (and squinting because of the glare) as I watched over a pound of beautiful merino yarn turn to the color of slime. Remember You can’t do that on television? It was like that.

I guess I should explain. I'vd had the second lesson in the same week on why we don’t let our children pick their own yarn. I decided to make Jack a sweater for his upcoming birthday. He’s always complaining that I don’t knit him enough, and I was looking for an excuse to make something out of the Licorice Twist. So, in my most covert fashion (which isn’t very covert) I take him over to the rack of acid dyes and ask, “Which is the best color here?”

He picks “Bright Kelly Green.” A.k.a. Kermit the Frog green. The color itself is a very nice bright color, but I am sitting here picturing an entire garment in this shade. I’m not liking it. I steer him towards blue, but it ain’t happening... bright green it is.

The yarn dyed up perfectly. The tweed effect from the yarn is very subtle, but provides a nice texture. Of course though, it is still very, very, very green.

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000075.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_needles/000075.html On the Needles Fri, 11 Aug 2006 15:27:17 -0600 Job Update video store! Since I was very young I always thought that working PT at a video store would be the bestest job on earth (high aspirations, I know. But it is a step up from the service station attendant I idolized in my preschool days.)

So now I am gainfully employed by the illustrious movie rental industry. How is it, you ask? Disappointingly, as is the case with everyone who has idolized a minimum wage job at some point, I have come to discover a horrid reality… it’s a job. I vacuum floors. I Windex glass surfaces. I print out reports. I make change. I make a lot of change. I answer questions for cranky customers. I answer questions for wonderful customers. Yes, my friends, it is, unfortunately, work.

But, hell, if you’ve gotta work a min wage job, a movie store freakin’ rocks!!! Ok, let’s not even get into the free rental situation. I now have a use for my myriads of useless movie trivia! I now have an excuse for watching at least 9 movies a week! Yes! Yes! Yes!

You’d think that watching six to eight new releases a week would give me more of a reason to update my video reviews section. Well, you’d be right, it does. But the difference between should and would may become pretty damn apparent. I’ll try…. Really, I will. ]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000074.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000074.html Daily Posts Mon, 20 Feb 2006 18:29:54 -0600 My Sincerest Apologies
Now here is where you point towards your hard-working neighbor with six kids who holds down a full-time job at Wal-mart and still manages to get everyone to hockey on time. Well, I say more power to her. That is not a mom. That is a freaking super-freak of nature. She is way more "together" than I am. But, I bet she'll be committed ten years before me too. I guess I'll just have to resign to being inferior on this one.

Ok, so we've established that I have a perfectly legitimate excuse. Of course having a "reason" doesn't really justify the results to me. So I am going to post more. A lot more. If you consider the fact that it's been a few months since my last post, I'm thinking this is a campaign promise I can keep, eh?

Here's to my delusions! Cheers!]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000073.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000073.html Daily Posts Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:40:45 -0600 Long lost siblings re-united Dog tries to kill sister.
Damn dog.

So we got Forest and Sable together for the first time last night! Actually, if you are used to dogs, it went very well. There was a whole lot of barking and growling and a few unpleasant "I ain't stinkin' my arm in there to pull them apart" dog fights, but they spent more time wagging tails, licking butts, and ignoring one another than fighting if you really total it all up.

If you haven't heard yet, we discovered a month or two back that friends of ours has one of the other dogs from Forest's litter. It was so odd to discover this now because we have known each other since before the adoptions took place eleven years ago! They were over at our house and I was talking about my cranky old man (Forest) and we got to figuring out how old he is. The looks from the other side of the room got more bizarre as I continued into the situation surrounding his adoption (they were abandoned at the shelter at 4 weeks old.) Eventually Jenny mentioned that Sable (one of their pups) and a past neighbor had two of the other dogs from what simply had to be the exact same litter. We amused ourselves with recollections on how only two out of the five or so puppies had shared more than one breed. They've all got lab, but past that it was a God-only-knows mix. We are guessing definitely beagle in there somewhere though because 3 had both beagle and lab traits. So Sable is a black lab.

So, Jenny shows up for dinner last night and mentions that she's got Sable in the back of the car if we wanted to try and introduce them at some point. Both of our families lost a dog this summer, making Forest and Sable suddenly only-dog-children, so we thought, hey, it's worth a shot. We figured the worst case scenario involved me scraping Forest's remains off the sidewalk and Sable being tossed back into the car through supper. I slapped on Forest's Gentle Leader (if you don't have one of these you should look into it, they are awesome) and we went down the street to do the introductions on neutral territory. Neither dog is remarkably sociable, but they both have done fine with some other dogs in the past. They are still working out some territory issues, but they shared the big fenced in backyard alright, and did okay inside for a little while.

I think there may be some potential for a few outdoors play-dates eventually, but I'll be happy either way. It was totally worth it to see a full-size black lab and a half-size lab/beagle mix sitting next to each other and to say, "I'm sorry Forest, but your momma was a whore." ]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000072.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000072.html Daily Posts Wed, 02 Nov 2005 19:58:19 -0600 Growth is Good ... right?
This time of year I always find myself longing for a true brick and mortar shop. We have decided this will be our end goal, but we will be smart and do it s-l-o-w-l-y. After much painful debate, we have also decided to kill most of our tie-dye inventory. Yup, you heard me right, we're dropping about two-thirds of our tie-dye lines. We will continue to sell the baby items, and a limited number of kid and household things, but most of the adult lines are out the door. We will still keep blanks on hand for special orders, in case a family wants to deck themselves out, but adult T's and so on... gone! gone! gone! I'm even contemplating ebay to unload it. Ack! Someone shoot me, quick!

Don't worry, we aren't going out of business, but we're finally going to take the business places we've been trying to go for two years. We've been trying to expand our yarn selections since fall of 2003, but we were too busy making rainbow swirls to actually accomplish it. So this year is the year! I've been sitting down late at night and paging through sample cards, picking my poisons. We've also started stocking Playsilks! This is something I've been hoping to accomplish for over a year, and it feels so great to finally have them out there!

To top it all off, I've been taking small business classes at the local technical college. They have a small business cert. program and I'm plugging my way through it. I had forgotten somewhere along the way that college was actually work, but in a discussion with Jo last night, she helped me to clarify an important point. It is a lot of work and especially time, somewhat of a precious commodity around here, but I am actually learning something. I am learning lots of useful tips and pointers. I am learning valuable processes. And I am even learning that I knew quite a bit before I started the classes. And it is somewhat of a comfort to know that I really so understand my business, and anyone who has BS'd their way through a small business venture will know what I mean!

So, here's to bright futures, and goodbye to successful pasts! Onward Ho!

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_job/000071.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/on_the_job/000071.html On the Job Thu, 29 Sep 2005 17:22:11 -0600 On the Move
I'd post pics, but I took the camera to a show and now it's packed away in a box and I'm too dang lazy to go dig it out. Ok, all you 3rd children out there, did you ever resent your parents for not taking pictures of you? We've got a billion of Jack. Ten of Beth Ann and, well, I'm sure we have a few of Wendy.... somewhere....

Crawling is one of those fuzzy milestones that parents look forward to and dread (well once they know what they are in for they do!) It's awesome to know that they can, but within a day you wish they'd forget they'd ever become mobile. Already Jack is beginning to see how "not cool" Wendy's new-found freedom is as I make him pick up every last lego and string beads in exile over in the corner that no one ever uses. Babies sure suck, don't they Jack?

At three in the morning I would tend to agree. I know that it is a phase they grow past, but baby crawling on my head is not my favorite late night activity. Neither is "baby pulling to see how far my hair can go down the mattress" or &wake up, Mommy! that face plant I just did against your hip actually hurt my nose!" Of course, once the sun has been up for an hour or so, she makes up for it by regaling us with a giggle storm as she gets up on her tippy-toes and rocks for five minutes. *sigh* Timing is everything isn't it?

]]> http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000070.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/daily_posts/000070.html Daily Posts Wed, 03 Aug 2005 18:58:02 -0600 The Newbery Challenge
    Thing I hope you'll see:
  • Searchable lists of Newbery Award Winners (Medal & Honor Books)
  • Possibly lists of other Awards Types
  • Follow along with my progress as I attempt to read all of the Newbery adn Caldecott winners
  • Track your own progress, should you choose to accept the Challenge on your own!


    • The Newbery Challenge I have set forth a challenge to myself to read as many of the Newbery and Caldecott Award Winners as I can possibly take. It is not without rules, however:
    • My goal will be to focus on winners since 1950. I already have a few older ones under my belt (like Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson, 1945 Medal Winner), and I may choose to read more. My goal, however will not include winners between 1922 and 1949 by default, since a girl has to have limits.
    • My goal will "require" only Medal Winners, but I would like to attempt as many Honor Books as I can.
    • I will limit myself to books I can get through the library (including Inter Library Loan), from friends, and from the bowels of our stacks upstairs. I will not eBay just to finish the list.
    • I will finish the books. Any book that I can't get through does not count.


    1 Wish me luck! ]]>     http://www.3kidscrazy.com/the_newbery_challenge/000069.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/the_newbery_challenge/000069.html The Newbery Challenge Tue, 02 Aug 2005 12:58:46 -0600     Happy B-Day, Newbery
  • My goal will be to focus on winners since 1950. I already have a few older ones under my belt (like Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson, 1945 Medal Winner), and I may choose to read more. My goal, however will not include winners between 1922 and 1949 by default, since a girl has to have limits.
  • My goal will "require" only Medal Winners, but I would like to attempt as many Honor Books as I can.
  • I will limit myself to books I can get through the library (including Inter Library Loan), from friends, and from the bowels of our stacks upstairs. I will not eBay just to finish the list.
  • I will finish the books. Any book that I can't get through does not count.


    • Here is more on the Newbery Award, taken from the ALA site:
    • The Newbery Award was the first children's book award in the world.
    • The Newbery Award was first awarded in 1922, and is still awarded today.
    • The purpose of the Newbery Medal was stated as follows: "To encourage original creative work in the field of books for children. To emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve children's reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good writing in this field."
    • In 1971 the term "runners-up" was changed to "honor books."


    I'm debating adding the list of Caldecott Medal winners to the list, but that decision hasn't been made just yet....

    For more on the Newbery Award visit the American Library Association's Newbery Medal Home Page.]]>     http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000068.html http://www.3kidscrazy.com/reading/000068.html Reading Tue, 19 Jul 2005 21:21:59 -0600