As I write this, I can hear the neighborhood children playing outside my house… rolling around in the grass and squealing.  I am a firm believer that children should spend as much time in nature as possible – in order to respect and cherish something, you need to know it! – but it is very important that children, and their parents are mindful of some of the risks…

The month of May – today being the last day of it – was Lyme Disease Awareness Month in many states, including my state of Maryland.  The timing is significant since more people are spending time outdoors with the warm temperatures and sunshine.  People love to be outside in this weather soaking up the sun, socializing at cookouts, hiking through the woods;  on the same token, it is during this time that ticks – the insect that carries the Lyme pathogen – begins to thrive.

I have mentioned my struggle with Lyme disease (and the related disease that I also contracted) on my blog before, but never in any kind of detail about how it affected me.  At first, I thought it would be burdensome to read about illness, but as a sort of public service announcement, I believe it bears repeating…

Kris and I go to the Eastern Shore of Maryland each June and spend a few days at the beach with his parents.  For  the last several years, we have taken our bikes along and have sought out some mountain biking trails en route to the beach.  The Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware is a beautiful place with several forested areas and waterways to explore.  Kris and I stopped at one of the state forests near Salisbury last June (photos from that day) and biked around the park for awhile and snapped a few photos.

I was aware of Lyme disease, and made an effort to wear long pants and to  tuck my socks into my pants (there was a lot of underbrush).  I was wearing a t-shirt and a bandana on my head, and was also carrying a small lightweight backpack with my camera and canteen.   We stayed for a few hours and left with some mosquito bites and a healthy appetite.  We drove another hour towards the coast, stopped at a farmer’s market to get some food and ate outside (we were still kind of sweaty…) before meeting up with Kris’s family.  Neither one of us immediately rushed to the showers, instead staying outside longer – Kris went fishing with his brother and I sat out and played with the nieces and chatted with my mother and sister-in-law.  It was probably about 6 to 7 hours later that I undressed and discovered the small specks all over my legs.  Upon closer examination, I realized that the specks were actually ticks.  They covered my belly and upper legs to my knee.  We stopped counting around 15. 

I stayed calm, and Kris and I got them out and didn’t worry too much more.  Over the next day, I found a few more specks (no larger than the head of a pin – these were very small deer ticks) We didn’t find any visible specks on him, even though he was with me the whole time we were in the forest.

Fast forward about three/four weeks – Mid July:  I notice a small patch on my left thigh.  Not quite the “bull’s eye rash”, but definitely an abnormal splotch.  I ignored it for about a week, then I begin to wonder if it might have something to do with the tick bites.  I scheduled an appointment with my general practictioner and he immediately noted it as abnormal and sent off for a Lyme blood test.  …weird thing was that my first test came back negative… It was about that time that I began to have some serious symptoms:  serious joint pain, especially in my jaw and neck, tingling and numbness in my legs and arms, serious heart palpitations and shortness of breath (not while doing any exercise or anything physical).  My doctor went ahead and put me on some antibiotics and wanted me to see a cardiologist and a pulmonary specialist.  I spent a whole afternoon in the office getting a battery of ultrasounds and -grams tests… but things just got worse, even with the medicine.  Quickly my memory was fading, and there was a serious broken link between my brain and my mouth.  I could not speak what I was thinking, and the numbness in my legs and arms increased so much that they felt like dead weight.  …and then I seriously thought I was going to have a heart attack because of the persistant palpitations and shortness of breath…

Kris and I were seriously scared.  I woke up each day wondering what was going to happen next… and I am not exaggerating… whether I would wake up at all.  It was a very scary time.  I am so grateful to Kris for his help during this period – it is still so foggy in my mind – he did research and found out that what I was experiencing was very real and was undoubtedly related to the tick bites.  He found a doctor that specialized in Lyme and related co-infections and made an appointment with me.  He had to drive me there and help me into the office – I was not able to do it myself.  He came in to the room with me and as I sat there in my fog, he told the doctor what had happened.  I chimed in when I could.

What I experienced was a very quick set-in, undoubtedly from the sheer number of ticks that bit me.  Immediately, the doctor clinically diagnosed me with Lyme and a blood test confirmed that I also contracted a blood disease from the ticks called Babesiosis.  Looking back now, I realize that it was because of the diseases, but also many of my unhealthy habits – specifically diet-related -  that made my illness so bad so fast.

By the middle of August, I was on a very strict treatment plan that included many drugs – some to treat the diseases, but some others like supplements to treat some of my underlying issues like vitamin definciencies.  Using a holistic approach, my doctor also encouraged a strict diet and some mild exercise …and within a matter of weeks, I began to feel so much better.  Like SO much better… better than before I was sick.  Things were brighter and smelled sweeter.  No more low lows and depressive periods.  I even had the added benefit of losing about 40 lbs.

Every 3.5 weeks, I had to go to the lab to get my blood taken for tests to determine my levels, and each month I saw my doctor.  She and I were both so happy with my quick turnaround.  My treatments were long and tedious – at one point I was taking 26 pills a day – and I had to be very disciplined.

…Last week – just shy a month of when I contracted the illness from the ticks – I took my last antibiotic treatment.  I am maintaining my supplements, but it feels so good not to take all of the serious medications after nine months of treatment.

The research on Lyme is still very minimal, and it is a controversial disease.  It is often ignored for years by both the patient and the doctor.  My doctor encourages me to pay very close attention to how I feel (and I still continue to see her although not as frequently) because Lyme is never 100% cured.  Lyme can “lay dormant” in some people for years and when their immunities are down for one reason or another, some symptoms can come forward.  It is a mysterious disease, but one that can be treated to make the patient have a better quality of life.

My experience with this disease was definitely not as severe as some cases that you hear or read about… but I caught it early.   Some people are misdiagnosed or go undiagnosed for decades.

You may have heard a bit more about Lyme Disease this past month – several major news reports came out both on the TV, newspapers, the radio, and on the internet.  My favorite magazine, Experience Life, had an amazingly informative and comprehensive article this month – the author is a science writer, but her and her whole family were ill from Lyme for years before they were treated.  Read the article here.

It’s about being mindful – isn’t it always?  Paying attention to what is happening both around you and in you.  And it is not about living in fear either… don’t let this scare you from going outside!  It hasn’t done that to me – I garden, hike, bike, and spend as much time outside as I can.  Just check yourself, your loved ones – even your furry friends – for the little buggers.  … and if you find them, don’t squash them.  Simply extract and flush them.  Then pay attention to any symptoms.

If you read this entire post, thank you.  I feel like this information needs to be out there.

Best wishes~

Well, a dream is in the process of coming true… for years, I have watched and loved the Olympics.  I enjoyed both the Summer and the Winter games, but the it was the winter games that really held my full attention.  As a young girl, I loved the figure skaters and ice dancers, and in the years since, I have really grown to love other winter sports.

…Growing up in a dry steppe (near desert) climate in southeastern New Mexico, there were not a lot of winter sports going on – perhaps that is why they interested me so much.  Plus, I was about 11 years old when The Mighty Ducks movie came out, and I was turned on to hockey then… that interest in the sport (and truthfully, back then, it was probably more interest in the boys who played the sport…) lay dormant in me for about eight more years until I met my own hockey boyfriend, aka Kris

Fast forward a few more years and you have a very devoted ice hockey fan and one who can actually plan ahead.  After the Beijing Olympics last summer, I looked into the Winter 2010 games and signed up for a newsletter from the International Olympic Committee about the games in Vancouver.  …and come October 2008, the buzz started.  Ticket sales, lotteries, trip planning.  I was ready!  Kris and I discussed and planned to go – not really researching much, but putting our names in for an international lottery for event tickets.  We signed up for 15 events in October, and it was not till January 2009 that we learned that we got 3 events:  a men’s hockey game, freestyle skiing, and a curling competition.   So, we waited to find out some more information about lodging and arrangements… and it wasn’t until mid-May that we were able to figure something out!  On May 14th, a huge block of tickets went on sale to the international audience , and Kris and I scored 5 more hockey game tickets!  So, now it is official – we are going to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics!

…and even more official now that we have a place to stay!  I tell you, in case you didn’t already know:  Ravelry is amazing.  I posted on one of the Vancouver boards about recommendations for B&Bs or rental properties, and within a few days, I had a great deal worked out with a fellow Raveler.  It all came together so incredibly perfect.  In fact, I started a Ravelry group specifically for the Vancouver Olympics, and there are already threads going for some of the events, and general information about Vancouver, and the beginnings of some knit/crochet-alongs.  Now, we just have to get the plane tickets and …wait… till February 2010!

But I have a plan for the interim.  That plan is pretty elaborate and involves traditional stranded colorwork and small gauge needles.  That plan involves Dale of Norway!

Many of you may know that Dale of Norway designs an “official” handknit sweater for each Winter Olympics.  Often they include some sort of patterning that ties into the culture of the host country – one of the most memorable was the dragons in the Nagano 1998 – you can see several of the Olympic sweaters here as well as the ski team sweaters.  The official Vancouver sweater will be released in June or July – according to the buzz on the Ravelry Dale of Norway group – and while I am greatly anticipating it, I am also realistic in the thought that finishing one of these elaborate small gauge designs in time for the Olympics will be quite a feat – but I really want to make TWO – one for Kris and one for me.  Luckily, Dale offers a huge line of ski-style sweaters – some a little less challenging, and easier to complete… I am specifically looking at these two designs:

Now just to find some of those glasses for Kris!   …The design at left is from the Dale of Norway #150 booklet, and the one at right is from the Liberec 2009 booklet.  I thought both had a nice amount of patterning without being too busy.  Both seemed wearable and “do-able”.    For the women’s version, I love the hem line/collar detail of the diagonal rib, and the gradient yoke.  The men’s is one that Kris approved of (surprisingly – he goes for the simplest of simple in most cases).  …now to find the right yarns and colors!  Ideas?

Seems like it could happen, right?  Am I delusional to think that I can do this (especially with all of the other knits I have planned??)

Vancouver Olympics 2010:  we are so excited!

Small backyard with FIVE Lollys to do the work!  Actually, this is a new experiment in “cloning” or “auto align”, done with Adobe Photoshop – we used this tutorial from YouTube.  It was fun to do!

We were finally able to get all of our plants in the ground – we started some from seed, and others we got at the nursery as small plants.  This year we expanded to more root vegetables – turnips, more carrots, and more beets, and the ol’ standbys of peppers, tomatoes (galore!), eggplant, squash, okra, and lots of herbs.  It’s a wonder we get so much to fit into such a small space!

Our worm composter that we got in late 2007 has yielded some great compost for us – and those little worms never cease to amaze me.  We eat a lot of vegetables, and they really benefit from that!  I considered taking a few photos of the worms to share with you all, but I realized that I might lose some readers if I were to do that… I love them, but I have been warned that not everyone loves them as much as I do!   

We have two varieties of worms in our composter:  the red wrigglers and the European nightcrawlers, and they love pretty much everything we give them.  They get loads of vegetable cuttings – tops of carrots, potato peels, celery stalks, apple cores, but they also get tea bags, newspaper, pet hair.  The population dies off a bit over the winter, but within 2 months, they can double, and sometimes triple, the population again.  They truly are amazing – it’s like having a little factory on our back porch.  And since we are always feeding them, we are always getting more fresh compost for the plants and flower.  It is a total win-win

Kris and I definitely enjoy our gardening – however, I think our favorite thing might be the eating part!  Nothing like fresh veggies and herbs straight from the garden chopped up and put on the grill!

…and since our little backyard can’t quite keep up with all of the veggies and fruits we eat around here, we also rely heavily on our nearby farmer’s market and the pick-your-own farm.  Both of them open this week.

Bring on the summertime veggies – it is definitely my favorite thing about this season!

Dear Mom, 

As you know, I made a concerted effort to knit the Lush Swingy Cardigan.   It is a beautiful pattern, but something about the combination of factors of the yarn  substitution or doing the math calculations just really set things off on the wrong foot.  Two attempts, and row gauge remained a problem, and I  began to worry about a nice fit, and about the quantity of yarn. 

Mom and Lolly ~1981

…and I am a true believer that when making something for someone else, only good thoughts and love go in to it… and all the math and mix-ups were not making for good thoughts, unfortunately.

The last thing I want to do is make something for you just to churn it out and finish… but for it to sit in your closet because you didn’t feel good in it or because it does not fit properly!

From all of your years of sewing and general creative expressions, you realize what goes into making a gift for someone.  You want it to be special and for it to meet the needs of the recipient.  You made us so many beautiful clothes when we were children – and they always fit so perfectly!  You took the time to make it so!  …and now I want to return that gesture, in a small part, in the form of this cardigan.

Armed with many ideas for an alternative pattern, I was very happy to hear that you did not mind changing the original pattern – for I knew it was truly the yarn and the yarn color that you were most excited about!  Your new choice of the Sienna Cardigan (from Interweave Knits, Fall 2006) is a perfect choice! 

Plus, I think it will be rather effortless to make the few modifications that you asked for – no ribbing at the bottom in favor of a more “swingy” look, and a lighter feel to the overall fabric.  The pattern has your favorite feature in the shawl collar neckline, and also mixes in the little lace faggoting detail on the placard as well as the small picots:  small things that make a beautiful finished piece (I hope!)  Plus, it has simple and pretty lines – not too much going on since all of the details are balanced with smooth stockinette.

The Classic Elite Classic Silk is a wonderful yarn, and I think it will wear very well for many years.  It has a beautiful drape to it and will lay nicely however you decide to wear it.  …and you chose the color, and I am so glad  you did.  It is so beautiful to look at while I am knitting!  The color reminds me of the hydrangea bushes at your house – the little tips of them turn that deep periwinkle with flashes of violet.  It’s perfect! 

Too late for both your birthday and for Mother’s Day… but I hope this new pattern provides me with the inspiration to get this garment to you very soon – early summer cardigan!  …now I just need to find the perfect buttons!

I hope you love it!  (and now I will love making it for you!)

Love,

Lolly

Good news on the family front:  I am going to be an auntie (again!)  However, this time, it is my own sister, Mimi, who is pregnant.  She is due in early October and just found out last week that it is a girl!   Mimi and Daniel have lots of life changes happening right now:  they are moving to central California next month and then baby comes in the fall.   Kris and I are quite excited to get another west coast trip in this year to go meet baby (and to explore more of the central coast!) 

…as you can imagine, any time a knitter hears about a baby – and in my case, many babies, as several friends are also “with child” – the mind wanders to all the possibilities for little knits.  I have not ventured deeply into baby knit territory yet.  My knitting resumé includes two baby blankets, a bib, and a pair of booties. 

…I can add one more baby blanket to the list now…

Cotton Ball Baby Blanket – cuddly and snuggly in every way.  I got some cones of undyed unmercerized cotton at WEBS awhile back.  Initially, I intended to do some weaving with them, but instead, I decided to make a nice gender-neutral baby blanket with two strands knit together.  Simplest of the simple – stockinette with garter ridge edging.  Luckily, I have some more of this yarn for another one – it was such a simple and enjoyable knit that I already want to make another one!

Baby knits seem like the ideal way for me to do some major stashbusting.  This blanket was a great stashbuster (perfect for the Ravelry Stanley Cup Stashbusting KAL) and I have several skeins of yarn that fit well in the category of baby knits:

Do you have a “go to” baby knit?  Any ideas for the yarns I show here?  I have a lot of baby knits queued up over on Ravelry (and I received some emails and private messages asking me if *I* was going to be making a big announcement… nope… other than the fact that I will be an auntie!) but I would love to hear from you if you have a favorite – specifically little and quick things for small amounts of yarn – booties, hats, or toys!