A couple days after the fire we sat outside of our burned house, the air filled with that burned smell I'll never forget. Nothing like a campfire. It was a complex mix of burned plastics and paint and hair and fibers and sadness and memories. Just awful.
I was so nervous about meeting our insurance adjuster. I had this crazy image in my head of a pencil thin white guy in a suit carrying a clipboard and wearing a skinny little mustache. Of course he was out to get us, he was going to blame us for the fire despite what the fireman had determined as the cause.
With that fear came pure excitement to meet with the contractor that would rebuild our house. For some reason I had it in my head that we'd be back in by Christmas. That excitement was smothered by shock when Marv told us February. I lost it, tears streaming. I'll never forget the look on his face.
And my fears of the insurance adjuster were smothered when I met Brenda, a Midwestern mother of two, wearing a sweat shirt and jeans. She stepped aside for a moment in the middle of our meeting to take a call from her son. I knew then things were going to be okay.
Today we had the final walk through with Marv and Joe (the head carpenter). It felt so good to be walking through our house put back together, looking better than it did the day we moved in a year ago. New flooring throughout, freshly painted, new lighting fixtures and some bathroom remodeling....wow, I can't believe this is *my* house! It almost feels like we don't deserve to live in a place so nice...almost.
In the past few weeks of restricted activity I have been trying to get some knitting done and have managed to com
plete a few projects and start a few more! Sam lost a pair of socks I had knit him in the fire and he wanted a replacement pair. "Green this time, Mommy", he said. I dutifully knit him some green socks. It was fun and quick and he loved them so much he wore the first one for two days before the second one was even done, then he wore the pair of them for 3 days straight!I managed to knit my first pair of adult mittens in December and am excited to start another pair soon. They are also a quick, satisfying knit. I started a baby blanket for this little guy, breaking my usual tradition of sewing a baby quilt. Since my sewing machine is still at the restoration company and I don't really have space to do one h
ere. The timing is such that knitting one has been easier as well...though it will take a while.I am knitting with a Kashmir Aran yarn that is so soft. I have wanted to knit with it for so long, but didn't have the occasion or finances to rationalize spending nearly $60 in yarn for one blanket!! The time has come and it will be a beautiful gift for my sweet, third son when he arrives.
In other knitting news, I have recently received two gift packages from dear friends across the country, both including some pretty fantastic yarns and sweet one-skein project book! One of the yarns is a blend of silk and seaweed! I am very excited to start some projects after the baby blanket is complete. I think I might have about 4 projects on needles by the end of this month! Whew!
Yesterday marked 36 weeks in the pregnancy. With one more week of restricted activity to go, I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. However, this whole experience has been hard for me. At first I thought I would welcome the rest and quiet and time alone. What big pregnant mother of 2 active boys wouldn't want that, right? But with the rest and quiet and time alone also came loneliness and seclusion and my spirits have been kind of low the last week. I haven't seen most of the women I usually see every week and I generally stay quite active. So to suddenly be very still and relying on others to do most everything for me, is just not in my nature!
I had a visit from a good friend in the afternoon yesterday and she brought with her a big bag of home made foods, farm eggs and her two sweet sons. Her younger son is just 6 weeks old and I was able to hold him while he slept on my chest for over an hour. It was so special and just what I needed. He curled his little legs up under his belly and rested his little head on my chest and sighed and slept and I could smell his sweet baby smell. I was reminded of why I am taking things easy right now and reminded of what is to come for me in the upcoming weeks. It was a perfect hour and I am more excited than ever to meet our little Otis (there you have, it.....Otis).
