As I was trying to say the other day…Owen spent the night at Kevin’s mom’s house on Saturday. Seizing the rare opportunity, we took Cameron and Gracie into the city. He and I have been talking about taking them to the Museum of Natural History for a couple of years. The Butterfly exhibit was incredible. Kevin was fortunate to have a butterfly land on his jacket and we were all quite jealous. Cameron really enjoyed the Dinosaur exhibit and I have a great picture of him assembling a dinosaur replica–that I can’t upload from my camera phone! We missed the IMAX movie on the Galapagos but went to Passport to the Universe at the Hayden Planetarium.
I have so many happy memories of going into the city with my parents and braving the subways. I went to college in the Bronx so I am familiar with the subways now…but oh, how my mother hated them. There were pockets of sadness mixed with joy. Owen could not have handled the crowd or the waiting. And while we enjoyed dinner at a nice restaurant–it made me a little sad for all of the things that Cameron and Gracie miss out on having a sibling with autism. Even something as small as Gracie enjoying dessert–something she never gets at a restaurant–we can’t last that long.
Always mixed with the negatives are the positives–my children and better and more tolerant human beings because of their brother and the many families we have met through autism. I am stronger than I realized. And, because of Owen, I am more patient. Also, I seldom "sweat the small stuff". (I’ll talk about the renovations after) Can I ever say enough wonderful things about the teachers? Kevin and I didn’t choose to have autism in our lives. But these wonderful, remarkable, incredible teachers chose to work with these children. And I adore and respect them for it.
Speaking of respect…the Better Pal swap ended on November 15. I was fortunate enough to have Emma as my recipient. Like me, Emma is a parent of a disabled child–her beloved chick, Oliver. I thoroughly enjoyed sending gifts to her and Oliver. It is cool to have an overseas pal as you can send yarn that they have little or no access to otherwise. Of course, I was silly enough to reveal my identity practically before it started…but Emma was a good sport. Thanks Emma!
The Kitchen
The cabinets are all in. The moulding is almost completely up. Am I thrilled? No. The drawer fronts are a raised panel and are so narrow that the cup pulls we bought are too big. It’s almost too big for a knob even! I don’t know what Kevin was thinking! Have I mentioned we went with Thermofoil style cabinets? It’s like the Formica of today. Durability and timing were the key aspects here. Home Depot or Expo would have taken at least 6-8 weeks. And our local guy could bang them out in less than 3 weeks. And with Depot, you still needed to have measurements and all… Additionally, this thermofoil is supposed to be very durable. Owen can be destructive at times. Also, the doors are white on the inside. Looking at the samples–that were double sided–I just assumed they would have the wood look on both sides. Losing sleep over it? Nope! It’s better than before! Dishwasher and sink are here but the rest of the appliances come on Saturday!
Last, here is Cam. He earned his karate uniform. He was so proud. 
Oh, and knitting…still working on the Debbie Bliss boleros. And picking up some fab socks for me from my mom! Remember when she said she wasn’t going to knit any more socks for me? I should probably keep my mouth shut about things like that but I am the youngest and a bit of a stinker. How many times did I save this post as a draft? Enough!!
Cameron managed to make a humongous hole in his sock! I have no clue what happened and don’t even know if it can be repaired. Any thoughts? It was Trekking yarn. Impressive, huh?
make some mittens tonight. I also finished a scarf for the shop knit with Skacel Prisma mohair based on the Misty Garden scarf from Scarf Style. And I hope to finish a Transition’s Hat. The painter is here today prepping. And I am awaiting Silestone to come and measure again. Third time’s a charm–right? 
