I love little boys

HAPPY - c'est moi!

Many, many thanks to Angelique for including me in the PIF project. I was thrilled to get a lovely little envelope in the mail this morning (how did she know how much I love cool stamps!?!). It sort of clanked when I shook it so I was worried on the walk home - was it broken? Oh no! Maybe it was filled with so much love that it cracked apart? Thankfully nothing was broken - it was 2 (yes, not 1 but 2!!) lovely coasters featuring the most amazing flower pictures, taken by the lady herself! They've already taken up residence in my office, distracting me from any real work as I admire them over & over again. And she sent a beautiful card featuring another gorgeous photo (which will find its way into a frame, along with the ones sent to me by Sara - -just beautiful!) I am most humbly impressed. The highlight of my morning is to have been able to hold the "for good peoples" card. There's a lot of good energy in that card - I'll post photos as soon as I can.

Instead of reinventing the wheel, I'll share how Angelique has put it: “The idea is basically to pass on a little something 'nice' to someone. This wonderful idea started with Mary Contrary and has now traveled to Allyson Hill, Beebee Mod, Barking Biscuit and now me". Oooh, and me, I s'pose! It's a really cool story but distilled to its finest, it's a story about how being kind is never an action wasted. The chance to share a little of this kind energy with others (esp. those in the blogosphere who keep us company, entertain us and make us smile even on the darkest days)is a pretty cool concept, too.

This of course leads me to an important juncture - the next person in the PIF line. Want to play? Of course you do! Be the first person to leave a comment on this post and you'll be the next 'it'. I'll send you an email to confirm that you've been tagged. Join the chain and keep the good energy flowing - you'll get to forward it along, too. Isn't that the coolest thing EVER!?!

I collected the last of the mittens on Friday and got to visit among the LAND OF THE LITTLE FOLKS (or, elementary schools as most normal people call them). Waiting for one of the school's admins to finish a phone call, I observed something odd; all of the children now visit the washrooms in pairs! Isn't that smart?!? The buddy system is a great way to keep track of kids, especially with the amount of anxiety (and the reasons for that anxiety, 'out there'). The little girls giggled together, holding hands as they went into the WC; the little boys however, were a different breed of animal all together. Two boys, probably about 7 headed past me in the hallway, silently moving towards their goal (WC). As they finished up and were washing their hands, I heard Boy 1 ask Boy 2 if he had a girlfriend. Boy 2 mumbled a response and Boy 1 replied, "yeah some girls you'll just never understand". How's that for back country logic! Little dude's got us all sussed out, ladies. I suspect he'll be a force to be reckoned with when he's old enough to date.

I'm still working on knitting enough mittens to fill a few more bags for next winter; in a rural area, mittens are highly prized. This is especially true when we get hit by our famous freezing rain and bitter winds. I grew up with snowy winters and heavy snowfall warnings. I assumed that we were moving into a more stable, warmer climate when we packed our bags ten years ago. Was I ever wrong! The weather here changes constantly - one minute you're in scorching heat, unable to breathe, the next you're trying to keep the dirt out of your eyes as a dust storm flies through, or hoping that your roof doesn't blow off in a heavy windstorm. Our winters seem mild... until you head outside on a sunny February morning and feel the skin on your face turn white with frostbite. Eeeks! A few pairs of mittens really make a difference. One school admin told me that she keeps mitts, socks and hats available for anyone who needs them. If they don't need them anymore, the kids know to hang wet things to dry or to replace the item in the storage cabinet.No questions. No embarrassment. No scolding. Isn't that great! I was really happy when this school returned an empty mitten bag - they used up all of the mittens! Happy doesn't even begin to cover how I felt. If you're a mitten-knitter, drop by my other blog and check us out. Make up a few pairs and keep a few more little hands warm next winter :)