All about our Zoo

Steve

2010-11-24T00:56:00.000-08:00

Why I dislike knitting!

2010-04-19T19:53:00.000-07:00

I both knit and crochet. I like crochet but it isn't as pretty as knitting. So, periodically I take up a knitting project that is more than just knit, purl, knit, purl....if you know what I mean. I happened to get some free yellow yarn and found a pretty baby blanket pattern. it is made in strips of lace knit and seed stitch. Then you sew the strips together and make a seed stitch border.
Since beginning this project I have had to rip out several rows several times due to someone talking to me, the phone ringing, being called to dinner, or some other interuption.

It is frustrating...but at least I am proficient enough to figure out where my mistake is so I can go back and redo the row it is in! I guess that accounts for something! I am determined to finish it, and will resolve to think twice next time!

Newest Zoo member, Polka Dot

2010-04-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

For the Iranian new year on March 21st we bought a new fish. I didn't want to introduce it until I was sure it was going to live longer than a week!. We have decided(?) it's a girl and because she has black dots on her tail...Mary named her Polka Dot. Dot for short. However, Massoud calls her Dotty. She is cute! We feed her by holding her food in the water so it gets wet and floats to the bottom. This way she (hopefully) won't get bloat by sucking the food off the top of the water. We will continue to update her progress.

2010-04-15T00:24:00.000-07:00

Steve has taken to sleeping on the blanket my daughter-in-law April gave me for Christmas in 2008.He liked sleeping right between us for quite some time. However, this is his new digs. Nighty- night kitten!

No Ruz!

2010-03-28T00:34:00.000-07:00

This is our Iranian New Year Table. There should be seven things beginning with the letter "S". Apple is "sib", garlic is "seer", coins are "sekeh", vinegar is "serkeh", the green grass is "sabzeh", a spice called "sumac", and the hyacinth is "gol sombol". Plus the fish and the mirror and the holy book all have a significance. As you can see we have an eighth "S"....Steve the Stove....who is hiding behind the grass which he likes to eat. Happy No Ruz!

Mommy

2010-03-10T01:06:00.000-08:00

On February 21,2010 our Mother passed away. When my sister called to tell me I went numb.

Dad walked into church one Sunday with his mother. He sat down and watched as a beautiful 17 year old redhead led the choir. He leaned over and whispered in his mother's ear..."I'm going to marry that girl...". On October 9,1946 he did just that. They had 2 children by the time Dad graduated from the University of Utah Law School in 1949. Five years later, on March 3, 1954 I was born.

It still seems impossible that they are gone. I know they are in the spirit world working hard to prepare for the 2nd coming of Christ, but I don't know how long it will take to stop thinking of them as if they were still here. Probably never.

Avatar part 2

2010-02-05T11:32:00.000-08:00

Massoud and I ran into a girl whose name is Robin at the Avatar screening who is a really great up-and- coming photographer; http://flexingmyheartmuscle.blogspot.com/

She sent me these photos.

2010-02-02T08:14:00.000-08:00

My Sister,Cyd McBride, posted this picture on her blog. It is a picture of our brother, Dave in a newly formed singles ward bishopric. She posted it because at about the same time her son, who is also named Dave, was called to the bishopric in his ward in Philadelphia. My brother Steve Fox has also served in a bishopric. I remember years ago reading my Dad's patriarchal blessing. It said that his children would be leaders in the church. We have great genes!

Avatar at IMAX

2010-02-02T07:53:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday evening we went to the Pacific Science Center IMAX to see Avatar. Mary and Massoud had not seen it so Ali, April and I went for the 2nd time. What a beautiful movie to watch. It speakes to the brilliance of a director and actors who filmed so much of it without a set! The story may be Pocahontas revisted but every love story has been heard a thousand times. The CGI was impeccable, and there was a seamlessness to what was real and what wasn't. Immagine 20 years from now....we will look back and say how funny it was that we thought it was so good...evolving technology is fun to watch!

Gadgets!

2010-01-28T11:17:00.000-08:00

After the holidays we decided to clean out the cupboards, the pantry, and the refrigerators and freezers. We got rid of all the old food, and made room for the new kitchen gadgets I got for Christmas. The waffler makes two waffles at once. The rice cooker makes a flourless chocolate cake that is yummy and I have a new crock pot...(send me your recipes!) It was a lot of work but really worth it. Now we don't buy food we already have. Saves money. I posted the lists of what we have on the inside of my pantry door. We also put up a small white board to make a grocery list on. Let's see how long we stick to this program!

2009-12-19T08:59:00.000-08:00

Only 6 days until Christmas and I am having the usual angst about not being ready. I am not one of those people who makes lists of things to do. I buy things throughout the year and hide them only to discover them months after Christmas in their hiding places. Wrapping is getting harder and harder every year...I can't sit on the floor to do it any more. So, I do it on the bed so that I can stand and do it. (Why didn't I think of this years ago???) Massoud also remembered that he gets free wrapping on gifts from Macys. It is great to have gifts wrapped in really pretty papers with pretty ribbons on them but it took them almost 2 hours while he waited for them to get the job done.....I know, we should have thought of it when we bought the gifts!

My Sister-in-law is here from Iran with her husband. They are staying for 5 weeks...until New Year's eve, but at the moment they are in San Francisco visiting relatives and seeing the sights. Massoud was going to take me with but I declined. Now, with so much to do I am glad I stayed behind. Need to get my visiting teaching done and prepare a lesson for Sunday! AAAAHHHH! Do I sound a bit concerned???

All better!

2009-11-30T13:05:00.000-08:00

OK...so the house got painted, Massoud's sister arrived, and Thanksgiving is over. Wow, that was fast! Sadly, Shadman died. We buried him in the backyard. Mainly because he was so big I was concerned that he might clog the toilet if we tried to flush him down.

2009-11-14T13:47:00.001-08:00

Here is a christmas stocking update... I am close to finishing! I have to do it in the quiet so I can count. Otherwise it will come out all wrong. Look at the mega hook I am using...it's an "L". It's fun and fast so I am unjoying it. Also uploaded is the finished product after i "felt" it in HOT water in my washing machine.

Paint

2009-11-14T12:59:00.000-08:00

We painted our living room, dining room, and the wall going up the stairs...the color on the wall up the stairs and in the dining room is called "Soiree". The color on the darker wall as you enter the dining room is, "Impala". The color on the ceiling of the dining room is "Chicken". These are paints by "Devine". http://www.devinecolor.com/. I love how it looks...but notice how torn up the house is!

2009-11-14T11:12:00.000-08:00

I would like to write something this morning but Steve is sitting on me in front of the computer and I can't see the keyboard. I only type about 35 WPM so this is difficult. He keeps licking my chin.I wanted to get a picture of him doing it but he just got mad and started biting my hand. Then he licks it to say he's sorry. At least that is what I think he is doing. Probably not...maybe it just tastes bad. So, he licks it to a flavor more to his liking. He only bites hard when he is mad...here he is just annoyed with me.

A job I loved!

2009-11-08T22:06:00.000-08:00

Today it felt so good to go to church. I worked at Macy's just long enough to quit when they wouldn't give me Sundays off. I had to work 3 Sundays in 8 weeks. Being able to worship our Savior and our Heavenly Father on Sundays makes for a happier spirit. I asked again and again if they would just give me Sundays...I even told them I would work full time! But...no. Oh well, while I was there I got a beautiful Jewelry Box from Lenox for 1/2 off! (not personalized). Having the discount was really fun...although my husband didn't think so. Oh well Macy's!! You let go of a great employee!

Help?

2009-11-05T13:35:00.000-08:00

I was using that cute Halloween template and decided to change it. Now I can't get any templates to download properly???

2009-11-03T11:57:00.000-08:00

I am working on Christmas stockings...they are for Ali and April's house. They look like Dr. Suess stockings to me. They are "felted" by crocheting them with wool yarn and then washing them in hot water. Pretty cute, huh?

She found the pattern in abook called "Chicks with Sticks; A guide to crochet"

Little Aminals

2009-11-03T11:17:00.000-08:00

It is a sunny day hear in the Seattle area. There are a few wispy clouds around, but all in all it is cold but pretty. I hear people working on lawns...probably hired help since it is Tuesday. I am going to visit and elderly woman and try to finish up my Visiting Teaching for Nov. I only saw 1 of the women I VT in October! Terrible.

Anyway, Steve is in the window enjoying the sun, and Shadman is swimming right side up...for now.

Goofy fish!

2009-11-02T16:51:00.000-08:00

Here is silly Shadman...who is never gonna die...swimmimg upside down in his tank. Do not be deceived into thinking he is dead...no....he is actually swimming.

Today I was was annoyed because the cloads were swirling around and it was all sprinkly rainy. I could see off in the distance that someone was having lovely blue sky weather...but that was about 40 miles from here I'm guessing.

I am taking the mini loaves of banana bread I made and going visiting teaching...

Steve says, "Happy Halloween yesterday!"

2009-11-01T14:56:00.000-08:00

I am allowing Steve to be posted today. He is 6 years old. The vet says we better buy insurance for him because he is getting older and we will need it when he starts having "old age" problems. Have you ever priced animal insurance...it ain't cheap! Stay healthy Steve! This is why even though you cry to go out we keep you indoors!

Shadman

2009-11-01T14:49:00.000-08:00

Massoud's cousin left us with her goldfish when she moved to Florida. He has been alive for so long we can't remember how old he is. Maybe 3 or 4...we aren't sure. His name is Shadman, ( shod-maun). It means "happy". Now he has developed something called "bloat". It's really constipation. The vet told me to feed him peas. Even when I hold him and put them down his throat with a toothpick he just spits them out!. I am also feeding him an antibiotic. The long and short of it is...he is going to die. Last night and this morning he was floating aroundupside down...today I changed his water and he is right side up again! This is so frustrating! Why do I end up loving my little animals so much!?

Traditional Halloween!

2009-10-31T16:07:00.000-07:00

It being halloween Kevin asked for our traditional pumpkin soup! He's the only child of mine who likes it. His girlfriend Natalie came over for some as well, and then they watched "Sleepy Hollow". This is Kevin's tradition of course and no one elses. However, I was happy to oblige him and even made some pumpkin chocolate cookies with the pumpkin I had left over from the soup. He wished I had put raisins in them but...NOOOO.....MY tradition is Chocolate chips only! I used our Magic Bullet to puree the onions which made the soup way creamier! Delish!