And they're still busy.

I miss writing. I am overwhelmingly joyful in my new study mode, thanks to this year's New Testament study guide. Spiritually, I often feel the way I did when I was immersed in institute the first two years after I was baptized. The study guide is absolutely inspired, and it is exactly what I needed, when I needed it. It is also enriching my daily reading in the Book of Mormon.

And I miss writing. I do write in my study journal, and I'm the admin for a small Facebook group devoted to this year's course of study, so I post there a few times a week. I'm trying to remind myself that studying more deeply is better than studying quickly. There are days when I come home from work and can't wait until I can curl up in my bed with the study app and my journal.

I've fallen way behind in reading The Economist. I'm allowing myself to read just a few verses in the Book of Mormon at a time, but I'm highlighting and tagging and making notes in the app, so I'm feeling strangely not-guilty about that.

Have I mentioned that I miss writing? I'm also not getting a whale of a lot of knitting done. LittleBit's baby shower is tomorrow, and thank goodness I've gone in with Firstborn and Secondborn on a gift, because the second baby sock that theoretically should have been done last night so I could wet-block them and have them dry by tomorrow morning? I just finished turning the heel, and the first sock is hiding somewhere in a pile of clean(ish) clothing on my bed.

I'm spending minimal time on Facebook and Pinterest of late. I try to keep up with my friends' birthdays and good news. I throw the occasional pin onto one board or another, and I've somehow acquired several followers, which I think is hilarious.

OK, my two new tunics that I got from Gudrun for 70% off are lovely. I like the patterns. I like the colors. I like the fabric. And I'm less than thrilled with how they look on my body. There is a sort-of waistband that hits nowhere near what's left of my waist, and as either Middlest or Fourthborn remarked when I asked for an honest opinion, the tunics make me look lumpy in places where I'm not. I've worn both of them, and spilled soup on one of them, so I can't in good conscience return them. I'm thinking of trimming off the bottom parts and attaching them either to the bottom of a tank top or one of my spare slips, so that I have a fetching ruffle peeking out under other tunics.

Also, I got the spring catalog yesterday, and I'm frustrated that the cutest leggings are not available in my size. I don't know if the solid colored ones made from recycled nylon will be opaque enough to cover my garment bottoms. I am cautiously optimistic about the new compression hose in wild colors.

Speaking of compression hose, the white ones that I bought several months ago to wear when I'm in the temple, are working for me. It is wonderful to complete a session and not have my ankles pooling down over the tops of my shoes. I've been to the temple twice this month, which is better than I did last year. I went last night, asked for and received an accommodation regarding seating in the session, and was significantly less achy when I went home, though not enough to avoid a muscle relaxer and pain pill. I've been dealing with that hangover all day and can't wait for dinner to finish cooking so that I may put on my PJs and make an early night of it.

Dinner's done. Later [who knows how much?], gators!

Things got a little busy around here.

Perhaps I should say, even more crazy-busy than what passes for normal. I finished President Nelson's  challenge to read through the Book of Mormon before the end of the year, noting all of the references to the Savior. My app has beaucoups of little aqua highlights. It was a good experience.

Also good was our Christmas celebration. Another year wherein nobody went home crying.

I'm falling farther and farther behind in reading my issues of "The Economist." The new Come, Follow Me study program is wonderful and absorbing. I'm not getting much else done in my free time at home. The techniques I've learned through the Book of Mormon rereading and my new attention to footnotes and cross-references are blessing my daily study of the Book of Mormon as well. I would really appreciate having more hours in the day. I don't want to miss one iota of the spiritual growth I'm experiencing. And my creative life is suffering, although I did finish knitting Leftie and have returned to Middlest the small ball of orange sock yarn that I used for four of the leafy stripes. I've cast on a pair of baby socks for LittleBit's baby, who is due the end of next month. With any luck, the socks may be done by then.

More news: at Christmas, Fourthborn told us that she would need to be moving out of her hellhole apartment by the end of May. Was it possible to make room at the inn? I spent about ten days studying and pondering, and Middlest approached it from a different perspective. And we came to the same conclusion, which was that not only was it the right thing to do, it was the right thing for us to do. And that we needed to prepare to move her in sooner than the end of May.

So after work on Friday, I picked her up, and she is spending the week with us. On Saturday we gathered up a bunch of household chemicals out in the garage, and I took them to the drop-off. She and Middlest widened the path from the front of the garage to the back, and today we emptied boxes and bagged things that were not salvageable and took several items out to the curb, as tomorrow is trash day.

I should probably mention that I'm off work today and tomorrow. Today is my seventh wedding anniversary, and tomorrow is Beloved's sixth angelversary.

The nice couple who remodeled my loo two and a half years ago came by to discuss what it will cost to seal up the garage and turn it into a studio for the three of us. I'm wanting to do this without dipping into my 401K, so what we (the kids and I) are now talking about is having them do the basic shell and upgrade the wiring, we do the painting and flooring, we maybe just go with IKEA sewing tables instead of a long shelf at the right height, etc. Right now we're looking at $3K - $4.5K with all of the ideas that we floated. If we can take it down to $2K and then install the refinements a bit at a time, I would feel much more comfortable with that.

At this point I'm not sure whether I'm getting a tax refund and if so how much, how large my bonus will be, how large my raise will be, all of which will make this infinitely more doable.

At this moment we are all achy from the day's labors and excited about the future. Fourthborn will move into Middlest's current room. Middlest will take over the studio. We will have a place to create if we wake up in the middle of the night and can't fall right back asleep.

For the flooring out in the garage, Middlest has suggested bamboo over cork. We are thinking about a traffic door like restaurants have, but Fourthborn just priced one at $700, so we might just have an open doorway for now. We've figured out how to fit three of the four steel shelving units next to the dryer in a C-shape for our food storage.

There will probably be lots and lots and lots of ramblings on here, thinking out loud, rethinking, overthinking. You know, the usual.