Monday's News

A hat for TPP. Flower from Nicky Epstein's Knitted Embellishments.

In other news, John is home from Mississsippi. His group helped many people remove trees from homes and driveways. It is estimated that 100,000 trees were uprooted in the small community of Tylertown. Residents are working hard to get things back to normal. It will take some time and more hard work, but they will do it. As John's group left, the real support teams were arriving, people to clear trees from power lines and to get the electricity turned on.

And, for those who were wondering, there was victory on the football field on Friday night. Needville 42, VanVleck 13. A homecoming win is always a good thing.

In Memory of 9/11

This mural was painted on a building in our town not long after the attacks in 2001...lest we forget...we will never forget.

It's Addicting

Sometimes I get started knitting baby hats and I just can't stop. This frilly one will look sweet on a baby girl:
Ruffled Hat


This one is knit in blue for a boy:
Jester Hat


I made this one a couple of weeks ago:
Square Hat


I like them all.

Pumpkin Hat

Another set for TPP pumpkin patch. Won't the babies look cute wearing these? I used this pattern for the hat and this one for the booties.

Thanks to everyone for the kind comments about my husband's trip to Mississippi. John left a thank-you in the comments section of my last post (he's signed in as dj wooly bugger, a nickname given to him by our son-in-law...a long story). He and his group arrived safely in Tylertown, MS on Monday evening, so yesterday was their first day to help with the clean-up. From what I hear, it is encouraging to the residents just for them to be there. John's job is to cook the meals for his group, about 20 of them I think. I'm hoping to hear an update later today.

Meeting Goals

The shawl has been on hold for a few days while I've been knitting hats and booties for TPP. A last minute request went out to volunteers to make just a few more so we could meet our September target. We were also asked to make large sized blankets which we were low on. The response was good and assignments were made. I am confident we will complete our goals. Every two months we will try to provide 136 hat/bootie sets and 125 blankets to The University of Iowa Hospital and Cinics. We were told that 800 babies come through their NICU every year. It is our hope to provide each baby with a hat, a pair of booties and a blanket. It's a huge undertaking and we could always use some help. Laura delivered our first donation on Friday. I'm excited to hear how that went and to see all the pictures.

The news about the devastation caused by Katrina has saddened us all. Today my husband is traveling to Mississippi with a group from work. They are bringing supplies, physical help and encouragement to fellow employees hit by this storm. Last week it wasn't certain if they would be able to secure gasoline along the way, but that has all been worked out. They will be arriving late tonight and staying for a week. The work will be hard, but they are ready to help in any way they can. I am praying that their efforts will comfort those in need.

For Robyn

A picture (sorry it's blurry) of your brother directing the band in 20 minutes of For Your Eyes Only for Parent's Night. Does that bring back memories? I saw Matt checking his watch and Mrs. Amos shaking her head each time the brass came in too early. They finally perfected it by the end though...good thing because this is one of their show tunes.

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, Parents Night begins pre-game with the introduction of each football player and his parents, with pauses for pictures. Each player presents his parents with a gift provided by the booster club. Cheerleaders and parents are also introduced. The whole time, the band is providing the never ending background music. It's a long time to direct--it's a long time to play. But wait, there's more at half-time. Band parents join their children on the field and seniors and their parents are introduced. Then, everyone marches off to the fight song, ending with the little salute and "JAYS" (Robyn knows what I'm talking about).

This week we were playing Sealy. It was a close game and the Jays led for most of it, but in the end they we were not able to ring the victory bell. Final score, 17-14. Missed an easy field goal in the last minutes of the game. Next week is Homecoming.

Finding Beauty

When reading Margene's blog yesterday, I learned that Donna has challenged everyone to find something beautiful one mile from their home and post it on their blog. A good idea, I thought, so I took a walk this morning and came up with these pictures:

A Tree Lined Street


School Pride


American Pride


Turk's Cap and Butterfly



A Collection of Rocks and Fossils


Look around. I know there is something beautiful in your neighborhood.

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