making me smile lately...

1. Apheresis, donating plasma/platelets through the American Red Cross. I used to do this for years, then stopped going for a while, then started again a few years back when a young friend of ours was diagnosed with aplastic anemia. I had to stop again about two years ago because my veins were not being cooperative, but Scott knew it was a good thing to do, so that's when he started going. The Red Cross in Farmington recently upgraded to newer machines, so we decided it was worth me giving it a try again. Donation takes a couple of hours, during which you sit in a comfy recliner with one arm hooked up to the machine, reading or watching a movie or whatever. I always joked that it was like a spa treatment combined with a mom's night out. ;-) Mission accomplished with the new machines and it feels as good as ever to volunteer in this way. If any of you out there want to give it a try, Scott or I could make an appointment at the same time and keep you company through the process as we both donate. The American Red Cross will also give veteran donors and any new donors they refer a free ticket to the movies. Bonus!

2. Baking soda and peppermint oil for toothbrushing. My teeth feel so clean after brushing with this mixture that I wonder why anybody ever switched to store-bought toothpaste. Our dentist also wholeheartedly supported the choice.

3. Clear buttons with star murrini, some made for a friend's pink/yellow cardigan-in-progress and some extras made for the fun of it. These and other glass buttons, beads, and baubles will be with us at the Connecticut Sheep and Wool Festival this Saturday. Stop by and say hi!

4. The real possibility of finally getting solar panels installed on our house, through CitizenRe's program that's coming to CT. We already signed up for an evaluation and are psyched enough about the program to spread the word. If you choose to do the same, please let them know we referred you.

5. Re-painting the upstairs has begun. The paint for the main room was bought over a year ago and just happens to be called Aegean Teal, purchased way before we arranged our recent adventure on the Aegean and admired its lovely shades.

6. When Leah's invited to a friend's birthday party, she immediately starts thinking of what she can make as a gift. All ready for tomorrow's party is this hat, the Madison's Hat pattern. This is the second time Leah knit this pattern, with the first one being her first effort at stranded knitting. We ran out of solid purple, so this hat doesn't pull down as far on the head as the knitter would like, so she whipped up some ear flaps and added them on. Turned out great.

7. Tonight's spontaneous knitting date at an eatery with friends ended up with us bumping into an enthusiastic and friendly knitting group at nearby tables. We spent much of the evening chatting with them about various fibery goodness and are looking forward to seeing many of them at CT Sheep & Wool this weekend. Maybe we'll even run into them for a knit nite again sometime!