Kiss My Knits!

Spring-Summer 1962 McCall’s magazine
Craft project – tennis racket cozy
Somehow I doubt this will strike fear into your opponent’s heart.

The 40th anniversary of the first time a human being walked on the moon is upon us. We know now what happened, but let me share with you this little gem from 1961, well before the details were ironed out.

More below the cut.

Well, the greening of Em was a bust. It actually looks more green in the sunlight, but inside under low light you can barely see it at all. There’s a closeup at right which shows it a little bit, but it’s really hard to see in this picture.

I think “subtle” would best describe it. However, when you’re ten, you don’t want “subtle.” You want ANIMATED SUPERHERO AWESOME GIRL FANTASTIC. We may try some Special Effects brand but I don’t think it’ll do much more without bleaching her hair, which we’re not going to do.

Oh well. She had fun doing it, so we can chalk it up to another learning experience.



On an unrelated note, Em went to the dentist to see if the amoxicillin had cleared up her infection.

It had not.

The previous x-ray didn’t extend all the way to the base of the teeth. This one does. The dentist says that the two dark areas at the base of the roots on the second-to-leftmost tooth (the biggest tooth) are advanced decay. She has referred us to a general dentist with pediatric experience for a root canal.

Em’s taking it surprisingly well. I, on the other hand, may run the X-ray by someone else for a second opinion. She’s probably correct in what needs to be done, but I still need to check if there’s even a chance we can avoid it.

Em, meanwhile, has taken an eight-second-long shower (she timed it on a timer), changed into her princess costume from Halloween, and is watching PBS kids’ shows while hanging out on the couch. ETA: Now she’s added a swim mask. Just another day at Casa de Tvini.

To say that I don’t know what I’m doing dyeing hair is an understatement. I think she can pick up Radio Free Europe on that headset.

By the way, I’ll be taking this photo down fairly soon – this seems like the kind of thing that a young teenager might be mortified to have out there on the web in a few years.

My daughter would like to put two green streaks in her hair. Me being the permissive liberal type, I say “why the heck not?” I’ve settled on Manic Panic semi-permanent dye so it’ll last for a while but it she won’t have to live with it too long, and it could in theory be gone by the time school starts. Em’s chosen color: Green Envy.

However, I have absolutely no experience with hair dyeing. Yarn dyeing, yes, but I don’t think I can dunk my daughter’s head into a crockpot for a few hours.

Does anyone have any advice? Any links on the web that you think are particularly helpful? Anyone in Charlotte who can recommend good sources, or who might be willing to try to help us? I’d rather my daughter not come out of this looking like Sigmund the Sea Monster.

Little help?

ETA: Her hair has lightened a little this summer to a light brown. We would rather not bleach before adding color, as that creates a bigger problem come Fall.

ETA-again: I misspoke. Her chosen color is “Electric Lizard.”

My current non-Jayne project.

Giving new meaning to the phrase ‘eye-tooth.’

Well, sure enough, my shoulders and upper back are quite sore today, a result of holding a 75 pound child upright for extended periods of time. Still, as the sacrifices of motherhood go, it could be worse.

My husband and I got a little time this morning together, and went to the local EarthFare. Right now he’s making a coffee bean and anise rub for some steaks, which he’ll grill up later. It’s an experiment, but it sounds like a tasty one. We also got some smallish baking potatoes, just for good measure. And now, my energy’s fading, so since my husband is home maybe I’ll try resting my eyes a little. It’s not easy to do – Em wants a lot of attention and interaction. That’s definitely a good thing and a step in the right direction, but it still wears me out. Early to bed tonight, for sure.

ETA: Dinner was wonderful. Mr. Tvini also grilled a zucchini we’d gotten at the farmer’s market. Delish!

This one’s for Ellyn. She knows why. It’s also for anybody else who might need a smile.