Back in Business...........Finally!!

It has been a very long 18 months (and 4 days, but who's counting?) since the last time I had kids enrolled in my day care home. June 9, 2006, was the last attendance day for the family whose two children I had taken care of for all of their daycare time up to that point. They would have left me anyway since Molly was going to enter kindergarten in the fall, and I had opted to close the daycare for several weeks during the summer to take a once-in-a-lifetime vacation that Mike had been planning for several years. I was sad to see them leave, but fairly confident that I'd be able to fill their spaces (and a couple more) when we returned from our vacation in early August.

Unfortunately it didn't work out that way, due to a lot of complicated circumstances that occurred between the time we left on our trip and the end of last year. By the time I was in a position to consider reopening the daycare, pretty much everyone had made their arrangements for the school year and it seemed as if nobody was looking for an excellent daycare. Christmas came and went, and I fully expected to have some children enrolled for the new year, but nothing happened despite all manner of advertising, from word of mouth and colorful brochures left on the desk at the public library to expensive newspaper ads. Finally it was summer, and I STILL didn't have anyone enrolled. I took a temporary job in a day care center in Litchfield, which was not really to my liking for a lot of reasons but it did help me to get caught up on the mountains of past due bills I had accumulated. Eventually I had a family who committed to bring me their child, and I gave notice at the day care center. I was so excited to be back at home doing my own daycare using my procedures and rules, but alas, it was not to be. The Friday before the little girl was scheduled to start on a Monday, her mom called and informed me that they wouldn't be bringing her after all because her boyfriend had received a layoff notice with his paycheck that afternoon and therefore they couldn't afford to pay me. Once again I was unemployed and wondering where the income would come from to pay my bills, but relieved in a way to be out from under a job that was stressful and strenuous and not working out well at all.

Last Wednesday I came home from a meeting in Springfield to a message on my answering machine. Someone was looking for a good day care that would offer a part time "Mom's Day Out" one or two days a week. I called back, we talked and met for an interview, and finally today I had day care kids enrolled for the first time in a year and a half. Of course two kids for one day a week (and a discounted rate, at that) won't come close to paying my bills, but it's a start. It felt soooo good to get back into the home daycare routine this morning!

And for anyone who is reading this who would like to bring their child to a really awesome family child care home located in Carlinville, IL, yes I DO have openings. I accept children from 6 weeks to 3 years old, and offer full time, part time, and Mom's Day Out schedules. I have earned my Child Development Associate credential, I am nationally certified as a Child Passenger Safety Technician, and I will be pursuing NAFCC Accreditation as soon as I have enough children enrolled to meet their minimum requirement to apply. If this sounds like the kind of care you would like for your child, I would love to hear from you. Email me at familychildcare1@gmail.com and let's talk.

Guess I'm a Blog Slacker Now!

Well, after two posts fairly close together at the beginning, I've been reminded that it is now close to two weeks since I have posted. And how on earth did it get to be December already?? Didn't we just have Easter a couple months ago? Of course it's been pretty hectic around here, but what else is new?? There certainly has been a lot of blog fodder going on in my life, from how we spent Thanksgiving to my craft shows and knitting projects, not to mention the latest adventures in the life of the world's cutest grandson (I promise I'll have photos of Kindon up soon). However, after Thanksgiving weekend and all the accompanying commotion, I got up on Monday morning with a serious case of brain mush. I think I just went on overload, because I couldn't remember half of what I needed to be doing, couldn't focus enough to get some of my complex (and very time-specific) knitting projects started, and basically didn't accomplish a thing all week. Here's hoping that the coming week will be a little more productive.

I finished up my craft shows for the season on Thanksgiving weekend. I still have a lot of stuff left but don't really have the mental energy to try and find another craft show to do. So I guess I'll be inventorying, boxing things up, and storing them until next year. Next I have to get busy on the knitting projects that need to be done so that the people who are buying them can give me money (a good thing since I'm not generating other income right now). At this time I'm finishing up the toe on a Christmas stocking that I need to deliver on Wednesday, and I have orders for a "red" hat (with purple trim), a pair of white gloves with red flowers, and six more Christmas stockings (and a partridge in a pear tree, LOL). If I could just figure out how to knit and type at the same time, I'd be all set. And despite what my kids will tell you, there is no truth to the rumor that I actually knit in my sleep. If I did, there would be no issues with getting things done on time. :)

Until next time, stay warm and well.

What I am thankful for......

A couple of weeks ago at church, my friend Sue Holtz-Kaiser presented the children's message. At the end she suggested to the children that every night as they were going to sleep, it would be a good idea if they would think of one thing for which they were thankful. Then in the sermon, Pastor Jeff quoted a website where the author suggested that everyone should find five things each day to be thankful for.

Clearly the major reasons I am thankful include my fabulous husband, four awesome grown children, and the world's cutest grandson, not to mention other friends and family and a multitude of other blessings. With that in mind, and given that tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day, I am happy to present a partial list of the other things I am thankful for this year:

• Contact lenses - having worn glasses for some 35+ years, I followed the lead of my middle son about six years ago and got fitted for my first pair of disposable soft contacts. I was amazed by the difference, and now I wonder why I waited so long to make this change. Who would have thought that such a tiny piece of soft plastic could totally transform my view of the world around me?
• Cell phones - at one time I firmly insisted that there was no way I would ever carry a phone around with me. After all, sometimes the reason I was leaving the house was to get away from the phone! Now that has changed, to the point where I wonder how we ever managed without cell phones. I love that since each of my four grown kids has a cell, they are more likely to call me on my cell than they would if I only had the landline phone (thanks, Cingular, for free mobile-to-mobile minutes!).
• The online catalog for my local public library. It's awesome to sit down at the computer, browse through the Barnes and Noble website, and then request books from the library rather than spending lots of money I don't have to buy them. It's also very convenient since I can do it on my own schedule instead of having to adapt to the library's operating hours. Now if they just offered free home delivery when the books come in........
  
• Chocolate (self explanatory, of course!)
  

May each of you have a blessed Thanksgiving, and may you be especially aware each day of everything that you have to be thankful for.

An Introduction to the Knitlady

I started this blog for family and friends to stay updated with the events in my life, and also to provide a forum to show my knitting projects.

I have been knitting since my mom taught me when I was nine years old. At various times in my life I didn't knit a lot, but now knitting has once again become a major part of my life. My daughter actually introduced me to one of her friends once as, "My mom, the knitaholic." I take my knitting with me to meetings, classes, conferences, and even Sunday School class. Over the years I've knitted everything from simple dishcloths and scarves to complex afghans and two lace tablecloths. I find knitting to be relaxing and very enjoyable as well as allowing an outlet for my creative energies. More recently I have also been knitting prayer shawls, and I'm attempting to get a prayer shawl ministry group started at my church.

Now that I'm mostly unemployed (long story for another post) I've been knitting lots of things to sell at craft fairs in the area. This coming weekend I'll be doing a craft fair in Jerseyville on Saturday from 8 to 3 at the Holy Ghost School, and another one on Sunday in New Douglas at the community center from 1 to 4. I also plan to upload photos of my work to this blog so that people who aren't close enough to attend my craft fairs can see what I have to offer.

I welcome comments and feedback from everyone. I'm anxious to hear back from people so that I know someone is actually seeing the blog.