There is an old saying that goes: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” I have no idea who said this first, though it reminds me of Erma Bombeck.

This week my family has been making a lot of lemonade. It was supposed to be my hubby’s vacation. The plan was to go camping and to take the kids to a nearby space museum. So we spent most of last week cleaning, repairing and replacing the old camping gear to get ready for the trip. Clothes packed, coolers filled, van loaded, we started toward our destination. About an hour from home the transmission in the van decided to spring a huge leak. A visit to a local transmission shop did not provide good news. We turned around and attempted to make it back home but about half way there the transmission gave up for good. Of course, the spot were it died was out of cell phone range. A very nice gentleman allowed us to use his phone and we were able to get a tow truck and a ride home. He was also nice enough to let us wait on his shaded front porch until help arrived. We had a lovely visit during our wait.

We arrived back home with kids (and a hubby) who were distraught that we were not going camping. So I took the youngest on my knee and asked if he would like to camp in the yard since the van was dead. You should have seen his eyes light up. We spent the rest of the afternoon locating the perfect “camp site” and setting up camp. We cooked supper outside, even roasted marshmallows. The house was referred to as the “bath house” or the “camp store” depending on whether we needed the bathrooms or some other part of the house. Mom was still allowed to have computer access and the kids got the enjoy the great outdoors. Our second night was spent on the living room floor due to thunderstorms but we put on a movie and still had a great time. We probably had as much fun as if we had been at a real campground. We haven’t laughed so much in ages.

We have used the remainder of the week to garden, get a few baby chicks to raise, read, knit, listen to music and generally goof off. Yesterday, the kids even honored us by cooking an anniversary dinner. It has been a nice time of family bonding after all.

Of course, we are still haven’t made it to the space museum, we are still concerned about how to afford major repairs or replacement for our van and our only vehicle doesn’t have an operational air conditioner. Gas prices and food prices are on the rise and I didn’t get that job I was hoping to get. Life is full of lemons lately but we still managed to have a good time and we know we will get by. We know that God will provide our needs even if we do have to suffer some temporary inconveniences. The situation reminded me of Paul’s exhortations to the church at Philippi.

“… for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:11-13

I have been having an ongoing discussion with SmallFry about idols. I am having a hard time helping him understand what it meant when the Bible talks about the Israelites worshiping idols. Then I ran across a thread on a knitting forum about knitting being an idol. So I started thinking more about what really is and is not an idol.

When you are studying the Old Testament you tend to think of idols as a statue carved from stone or metal or wood – like the golden calf that Aaron made in Exodus 32. But was there something about that calf that made it intrinsically evil. Not really. If you look a little closer at this incident you will see that it was the attitude of the people who made the golden calf a problem. Notice verse 1 and verse 4 of Exodus 32.

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” – Exodus 32:1

And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” – Exodus 32:4 (emphasis added)

The problem with the calf was not that it was a statue of gold but that it was becoming their substitute for God. The people of Israel had made for themselves something to replace God. There are over 100 different places in the Bible where idolatry is discussed, warned against and condemned. But we live in a civilized, intellectual society and we would certainly never bow down to an idol like they did in the Old Testament. Are you sure? In our society NFL football, NASCAR and a number of other sports hold their major events on Sunday. Children’s sports leagues increasingly hold their games on Wednesday night and Sunday. The most watched television shows are more often than not on Sunday and Wednesday. Maybe, we would never bow down to a golden calf or a stone face, but there are plenty of other things in our society that are becoming our substituted for God. Perhaps, it is time for us to reread the passages in the Bible warning of the punishment for idolatry and reevaluate our own priorities.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols– I John 5:21

In a few hours it will be Mother’s Day in the US. SmallFry has promised that his gift to me will be a whole day where he does things the first time he is told and when he doesn’t get into any of the things that he knows are off limits. Let’s hope he remembers that promise. I finished the second bath set. This one is for my mother-in-law but I haven’t had time to photograph it yet. Next post, hopefully.

I wish all you mothers a wonderful day. Enjoy your families and try to find a little time for knitting. In honor of the day I would like to share the following article with you from Alan Smith via Thought for the Day. Have a wonderful day.

The Blessing of Mothers

A first grade teacher seated her students in a circle. She asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. One by one, each child got up and announced, “I’d like to be a nurse like my mother,” or “I want to be a banker like my father,” or “I want to be a teacher like you, Miss Smith.”

The last child to speak was the most shy and timid little boy in the class. He said, “When I get big, I’m going to be a lion tamer in the circus. I’m going to face those animals with my whip and chair and make them leap through hoops of fire and obey all of my commands.” Seeing the disbelieving looks on the faces of his classmates that he could ever act so boldly or bravely, he was quick to reassure them, “Well, of course, I’ll have my mother with me.”

Many of us have had the self-confidence to accomplish great tasks because we knew that our mothers would be there to support us. In a couple of days, we will have a special opportunity to honor mothers. I think this is a valuable holiday because, if you are a mother, you will likely never get much special recognition for the work that you do training your children to love God, teaching them compassion, instilling self-confidence within them, developing character and teaching morals. You will perhaps never be honored publicly, given a medal (or even a certificate), or be compensated monetarily. All that you do may go unnoticed and unappreciated at times.

Be assured, though, that there is great value in what you are doing. On Mother’s Day, may you receive the honor due you.

“Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her.” (Prov. 31:28).

And be assured that someday you will receive the honor from your heavenly Father for the difference you make in the world.

I am in the midst of gift knitting. This month I have Mother’s Day, three graduations, two birthdays and an anniversary for which to come up with gifts. And it is the beginning of wedding season. Frankly, my brain is starting to hurt from scrounging for ideas. It is particularly hard to find gifts on a limited budget. Though truthfully, I would still have problems coming up with ideas with Donald Trump picking up the tab since I am not much of a shopper and suffer from acute lack of imagination.

I find that I have trouble selecting gifts for people who:

1. I don’t know extremely well (which describes everyone who is not my kid).
2. Those who have few needs or wants (in other words, they already own one of EVERYTHING and two of most things)
3. Those who have significantly different tastes than me (which may include everyone on the planet who is not me)
4. And those who are rather picky (you know who you are).

Did I leave anyone out?

Sadly, both my mother and my mother-in-law fall into many of these categories. I will leave it to you to decide which ones. Normally, I do a decent job a picking gifts that my children will like. This is not the case with anyone else on the planet. I especially stink with Mother’s Day because there is the perception that your gift is in some way a reflection on what you think of the recipient’s performance as a parent. The pressure!

I am hoping this year will be different and the mothers in my life will actually like their presents. I designed AND hand knit their gifts. Surely, that will say “You are the best mother on the planet and I love you very, very, very, very much.” Wishful thinking? Probably. But at least, I made the attempt.

In case you are having difficulty finding a gift too, I thought I would share the pattern with you. The design was inspired by the pink shawl that I knit for Ms. Emerald. As I was knitting the back lace panel, I realized that it would look really nice knit in cotton which starting me thinking of wash cloths which made me think of towels which made me think of those nice bath sets. You know the frilly, outrageously priced kind that you use in your guest bathroom.

Here is my interpretation of guest bathroom linens – Emerald’s Lace.

I didn’t do a very good job blocking that washcloth. Mental note: reblock that cloth before you give it to your mother!

Here is what the set would look like on your towel bar. Or porch swing if you prefer to display it as shown.

Here is what it would look like from the back side so you know what the wall will be seeing when it is hanging on your towel bar.

Here is one more shot with two washcloths just to insure that there are entirely too many photos in this post.

The white set will be for my mother-in-law whose bathroom is white and blue and the ecru set for my mother whose bathroom is beige and plum. I haven’t knitted the coordinating cloths for the sets yet. Well, actually some are finished but not blocked but that is another story. The pattern is available on my website on the Hands of Service page or by clicking the link on my sidebar or my Ravelry designers page.

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Project Details
Pattern: Emerald’s Lace Bath Set by me
Yarn: Peaches and Creme white and ecru
Needle: Size 8 (5.0mm)

I admit that I am not a terribly patient person. Even though having children requires you to learn a certain level of patience, waiting for things still is quite difficult for me. I tell you these things because I am currently waiting for this.

It all started with this post on Yarn Harlot. She mentioned a sock called Rivendell. Considering my affection for all things Lord of the Rings, I knew I had to have the sock pattern. Janel’s blog informed me that she would be releasing the pattern in a book she was publishing this spring. Translation – I had to wait. Later, she decided to release the Rivendell pattern separately from the book. This action caused my impatience to be at war with my frugal nature. Should I go for the instant gratification of the single pattern or wait for the book since I knew that I wanted some of the other patterns. I opted for the latter since I adore the sock on the cover of the book. Janel said on her blog that it would be available for pre-purchase soon. So I have been stalking her website in anticipation. A few weeks ago the prized book was available for pre-order (and at a discount too – reward for my patience!). Now the book has been pre-ordered and the serious waiting starts. It is supposed to be ready in May. Today is May 1st so hopefully some time in the next 30 days, I will have the book in my hands. I want to confess that this is worse than waiting for the last Potter book. At least I knew that at midnight on a specific date I could have the book in my hot little hands. But Janel only said May. What if the book isn’t ready for shipment until May 30th. Then I will be have to wait until JUNE for the S-L-O-W postal service to bring me my book. And then what if I am out of town on the day the book arrives or it gets lost in the mail. Argghhhh! Rivendell will not get here soon enough!

In a feeble attempt to distract myself from the wait, I am working on a new pattern for a bath set (washcloth and hand towel) perfect for Mother’s Day giving. I hope to have it completed and ready for download by the weekend. Here’s a sneak peak

Off to knit and wait for the mail carrier.