First Movie

We saw WALL-E to mark the occasion. Prior to yesterday, I never really thought he was ready to sit still for the length of a movie. I was prepared to leave immediately if any restlessness developed, but Young Man was a champ. He sat still and was quiet the entire movie. I was so proud!



Lunch at La Paz. Young Man ate chips and queso, some quesadilla, and fries.



Then, shopping at Wild Oats. I have to say, the mini shopping carts are a really great idea. I allow Young Man to select his own goods. He's chosen eggs, milk and cheese on his own before. And some fruit. He's got a good knack for finding pantry basics. He loves pushing his cart around the store and putting the items on the conveyor belt at checkout.

Intrepidly Making Mistakes

Em and I have been doing some bonding these past few weeks. I have had many small projects, so I have had lots of practice with bobbin winding. I have shortened the straps of both an Anthropologie top and a Catherine Malandrino top. I have repaired the busted seam near a pocket on a pair of one of my favorite pants. I have hemmed three pairs of pants to the desired lengths. My no-serger self loves the overcast stitch function on Em. With all these projects, I have had many opportunities to change out the presser feet.



I checked out the many decorative stitches that come with my machine. I also played with the blind hem stitch, which will be useful in repairing skirt and pant hems. I might have just made up the cost of Em.

I washed and dried the pink Joel Dewberry fabric that will become a shirt. Then I pinned and cut. Ugh - I cut by through the notches without making the notches. I'll just have to manually mark them on the fabric. I am a little anxious over the fit because while ease in sewing is the same discussion as it is in knitting, somehow I am feeling a little newbie-ish in proper garment fitting.



After buying a highly recommended sewing reference book - Reader's Digest New Complete Guide to Sewing - and reading some, I came to the realization that I should have placed the right sides facing together before pinning and cutting. Sure enough, I go back to my pattern and there it is - if you are doubling up the fabric, place right sides facing. However, I think I am okay. The pieces are symmetrical. I think the only thing I need to do is unpin and reverse my fabric. Then I can proceed with my tracing paper and wheel to make my markings.

I do like to just try things without fear of screwing up. The errors and failures I make along the way only help to learn from experience.

3

Like last year, we ordered a cupcake cake. It shouldn't surprise any of you that the theme this year was dinosaurs. And like last year, he was the messiest eater.

Window of Opportunity

When Husband yelled "Betty, come here quick and bring your camera," I instinctively grabbed my DSLR and not my point and shoot. I joined him on our deck out back and saw the beauty of one creature's work. It was really foggy (or "froggy" as Young Man put it) and my skin felt the heavy dampness of the dew, the same dew that had collected on the web to make it gloriously visible.



By late morning, the sun had come out. The strong rays burned off the haze and the visible web was no more.

Retention of Knowledge

Have you ever gone to a training class where you felt so overwhelmed with information overload that when you leave, you can't possibly want to think about what you just learned? And then a week later, as you attempt to recall your training, you think, I can't remember a darn thing? One time, in a training class of all things, I learned that it is not likely a person can retain all that knowledge when a person's full body of knowledge is comprised of their entire life's worth of experiences - one week class vs. your life (however old you are at the time). I learned that the key is to take away 3 key points to add your knowledge foundation.

I had the opportunity to take a yoga workshop this weekend with Ramanand Patel. I decided to take this workshop a month ago to further my yoga practice. Most of the classes I've taken in various local yoga studios are flow classes where I am in constant movement. The workshop is more similar to what I practice at home. Staying in the postures for extended amount of time, taking breaks between intense work.

I went to the workshop with the intention of de-stressing and learning new postures. After 12 hours over 3 days, I came away with much more. During our postures, Yogi Rama would tell stories, dispense wisdom, or crack jokes. Back to my point about the 3 key takeaways. There was so much to learn during the workshop, that during the last day of the workshop, I thought about which things affected me the most. Instead of trying to retain all the knowledge, I focused on 3 things.

1. Strive to be 100% present.

Ramanand talked about people saying they miss things all the time. Missing people. Missing home. Missing long lost toy. He said try to be 100% present in your current situation so that there is no room for missing. Sometimes, "missing" is a result of being bored. Your brain receives so much stimuli each second that technically, it is impossible to be bored.

I realize you might be in a sticky situation if someone asks you if you missed them and if your response is that you were 100% present when you were away, that you had no room to miss, it could cause some issues. Use as appropriate. Your mileage may vary.

2. Strive to go from the unknown to the known constantly.

Ramanand spoke of seeing the impossible through his travels. If something is unknown, make it a known. I think the concept is pretty basic and useful. In yoga, it's reaching for another millimeter in your pose.

I was attempting to do stand up from wheel pose with assistance from Ramamand pulling downward to create downward force from my lower body. I was supposed to not lead with my head. I was supposed to go into a deeper backbend, straighten my legs, and use my lower body as the leverage to get up. My mind blocked my body from executing properly. Ramanand said "It's just fear." Yes, fear of the unknown.

3. Strive for internal validation.

Ramanand told a story of a class he was teaching one time. There was a woman, presumably the most beautiful woman in the room. When they got to talking, the woman did not perceive herself as beautiful. It turns out she needed constant affirmation. Being told you are doing a good job, etc. feels good. And we all need it once in awhile, but if you feel internally that everything is well, then it is.

This last nugget was the wisdom I needed this past weekend. I've been all in angst over something. I went to the workshop not looking for the answer to this and the answer stared me in the face. It was surreal.



On a different note, during our Saturday and Sunday sessions, we had 90 minute breaks. The workshop was at The Yoga Room in the Berry Hill area which is an eclectic neighborhood. I took a visit to Textile Fabrics which was very near the studio. I came away with fabric from the Serendipity Line by P&B Textiles, Kaffe Fassett fabric, and two Amy Butler sewing patterns.