I should be out walking!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood today:)! Autumn is here in full force - or perhaps in its gentleness, for gentle it seems to be this year! Of course, winter will be another story, I'm sure!

 

A LOT has happened since my last post, dear 2.5:)  We welcomed a new little babe into our lives - Patricia Jane, or "Patty" as she is called, came into the world the morning of October 2, 2012.  She is named after my mother and me and perhaps also her Aunt and cousin, both of whom have her middle name. Those of you who know me on Facebook have seen these picture.  And yes, the cardigan on the right was knitted by this Grammy:). As my grandfather used to say, she has the map of Ireland on her face:)  - as it should be, seeing that at least 25% of her genetic material hails from there! Her brothers seem to have taken her appearance in stride.

On that same day, at about the same time, I was in Annapolis, arguing an appellate case, and "Pop" was home, taking care of her brothers/surviving the morning, LOL:) I used my first name that morning - something I never do, since I'm called by my middle name - but I felt I should, given that Patty was coming into the world with my first name and I thought it the suitable thing to do.

Regular "academic year" activities are also now in full swing as well as those things that keep up year round: Stephen Ministry, Bell choir, Adult Choir (hmmmm, does this mean we play the "adults?"), Prayer Shawl Ministry, Columbia Sip 'n Knit, and Women's Bar Association.  I'm rarely home in the evenings! I think that since my kids have grown I'm more interested than ever in keeping busy after work. 

Two weeks ago, Nancy, Rennie and I took a day off from St. J's and engaged in what I like to call "Ecclesiastical Espionage." We attended services at two churches in the Washington, D.C. diocese and also at the National Cathedral to experience their music programs.  It was really a lovely day. First, we attended the early service at St. Columba's Church - the largest parish in the District.  There Nancy and Rennie met former DC Bishop Jane Holmes Dixon and her husband, Nancy's former employer a number of years ago before the Bishop was made a bishop. My only prior encounter with Bishop Holmes Dixon was at a Lay School of Theology event about seven years ago - and she made quite an impression then. I took the opportunity to tell her so, for which she thanked me kindly.

After a brief foray to view the current exhibit at the National Cathedral, we attended the late service at St. Alban's - virtually a stone's throw away from the Cathedral.  The sermon was incredibly moving and so well crafted that it had me wiping away tears - and folks, I am NOT a person who cries at sermons! Of course, Nancy, who cries at the drop of a hat - well what do you expect?LOL!

A few factoids: One of the parishioners at St. Alban's is the great granddaughter of one of St. J's rectors! There's a pic of Rennie (who is an avid genealogist) speaking with her.  If you can see the mosaics on the floor of the center aisle, those are indicating other parishes that members of St. Alban's have "spawned" in the DC area.  Rather than growing large themselves, St. Albans parishioners have preferred to "grow" other churches.

 After our sojourn at St. Albans, it was time for lunch, so off we went for a nice lunch and chat.  Upon our return, we got some good views of the Washington National Cathedral, including the post-2011 earthquake repairs to the bell tower and fineals.

Being so close to the Feast of St. Francis,  October 7th was also the Blessing of the Animals, and the Cathedral clergy had their work cut out for them outside, giving blessings to a large number of animals, mostly dogs:).

The past couple of weeks have been filled with numerous client visits - catching up with clients I should have seen earlier and those I need to see now to prep for their court hearings. As a result, I have been out to western Merlin and have also played a lot of "ring around the Beltway." 

As a result, I haven't blogged much - usually because after I'm in the door and I've had a minute to unwind - often with a glass of wine  - I'm much too tired to sit in one place and type, let alone remember what my day has been like.

 But as I said, autumn has hit Merlin. A few days ago, I visited a few clients who are currently dealing with things at Sheppard Pratt.  The campus of this organization, which houses a psychiatric hospital, a residential treatment center for adolescents and other things too numerous to mention, still has the stateliness and beauty of the estate from whence it came. In the light of a late autumn afternoon, it looks like a college campus. Yet it represents a lot of pain and suffering in this world - hopefully pain and suffering and healing.

Well as usual, I am going from the sublime to the mundane:) On the knitting front, I am plugging away at my projects and ever adding new ones. One that comes to mind is a Prayer shawl that I am knitting on a somewhat "ad hoc" basis - in other words, I started out with a plan, but am pretty much making it up as I go along.  I started with a large amount of stitches cast on and am decreasing in hopes that the sides become the long edge at the top and the center grows together to help form the triangle.  Hard to explain.  Perhaps this picture will help.

 I am hoping that by decreasing at each end (after a three-stitch knitted-in i-cord) and on either side of the braided cable in the middle, the widths on each side will join and will be long enough to be a wide i-cord edge at the top.  If not, hopefully there will be enough yarn left to do a knitted-on edging to widen the sides. I think it might just work.  We shall see.  This will be a prayer shawl because the yarn I have for it was given to me by a woman who was donating yarn for a prayer shawl and I promised that's what I would do with it!

Am plugging away on the Eadon cardigan also, but no new pics. I did, however, recently complete a project that dates back to 2008, LOL:)! It's a Goddessknits pattern by Renee Leverington, now called Mandala.  It's a multiple-choice pattern, so the possibilities are endless.  It's circular and I thought for sure I had quit too soon and all I'd have would be a lacy tablecloth for a little table... maybe.  But non - c'est magnifique! In other words, it blocked out quite well:

 As I said, from the sublime to the mundane:)

Well, gotta get ready for the gang to come over.  JoAnna is visiting from Cleveland (taking something of a break from law school) and we are all (I hope) doing tacos together.
Wishing you all a happy and productive week and most of all, peace.
And God be with you 'til we meet again.
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