What light in yonder window breaks?

Today is the first sunny day in over a week, and frankly, it comes just in the nick of time. We had so much rain here in March that it was beginning to feel as though we were living Winnie the Pooh's Blustery Day. Rivers, creeks and wetlands filled to overflowing, and finding your way around town became an exercise in finding alternative routes.

The rain rain rain came down down down
In rushing, rising rivulets,
'Til the river crept out of its bed
And crept right into Piglet's!

The rain poured freely through the roof in several spots, necessitating frequent runs to the attic to empty the buckets, but the sump pump continued to prove itself to be worth its weight in gold; we had no flooding in the basement (and no dead mice! -- while I know that has nothing to do with the sump, I'm tremendously relieved that for now the carnage appears to be over), even though the drainage-ditch-disguised-as-a-creek behind the house overflowed its banks on Tuesday afternoon and turned the lower part of our side yard into a wetlands.


the area in front of the rose bushes was under water within hours of my taking this photo

The weather, WB's therapy schedule, and random sick children home from school meant that we were housebound for most of the week. The first two days I psyched myself up to do some long-overdue cleaning and purging (getting rid of those old bills and random household papers felt GOOD), but while I was tossing and shredding in an attempt to make things at home feel more organized and tranquil, WB was busy doing this:



I'm not even showing you the toy storage area behind the couch. Suffice it to say that if bin-dumping were an Olympic sport, WB would win gold.

There have a been a few bright spots in this dreary week: Eldest was his school's entry in the state drama festival, and on Saturday they competed in the finals in Boston. They aren't going to go on from there, but it was a wonderful experience. He and his cast mates are justifiably proud of the work they've done over the last three months. He was also cast in the sophomore's entry in next month's class play competition; he will be playing Einstein in Picasso at the Lapin Agile. ("Finally," he said. "A leading part!" I wanted to respond by pointing out that he's only auditioned for three shows and has been cast in every one, but restrained myself. Biting my tongue is proving to be one of my go-to techniques for parenting teenagers.)

Young'un is heading into tech week for a youth theatre production of Frog & Toad; the cast is still having trouble moving their feet and remembering the songs at the same time, but it is a safe bet that 90% of them will be there by the first performance next Saturday. If they aren't, well, the costumes are adorable (the Moles are wear hard hats and Mr. Magoo glasses), and it will primarily be performed for friends and family, not the most critical audience in the world. After eschewing a chance to audition for her school's musical ("I hate Seussical," she said with a withering sniff), Her Ladyship went out for the upcoming one act plays and was cast. "We seem to have turned into a theatre family," said B when he heard the news.

And finally, there has been knitting. A friend of mine just had her fifth child, which got my baby-knitting juices flowing. I may possibly (probably) have gone just a wee bit over the top in my enthusiasm.

First, after hearing the baby's name I HAD to make her the Olive You! hat from Itty Bitty Hats.



I could have done a better job of placing the appliqued olives, but at the time my primary concern was making sure that they looked like olives, not alien breasts.

I also seized the chance to make my first February Baby Sweater (Ravelry link). LOVE this pattern, although there are few things I will do differently next time.



I had some yarn left over, so I made a matching hat, used scraps of Cotton Classic to embellish it with a little crocheted flower:


the color is off here; the sweater picture is more accurate

As much as I love the finished sweater, I am most tickled by the flower. It's a simple little thing, but my crochet skills are most definitely still a work in progress, and I think it turned out very well. I also think it looks adorable on the hat. Add to that my desire to see something growing after months and months of winter, and I think my enthusiasm for this very basic project are understandable. I was poised and ready to make more, just for the purposes of seeing something, ANYTHING bloom, when the rain stopped, the sun emerged from behind the clouds and something magical happened.



Spring is finally, officially, here.