Am I an idiot?? Or merely ambitious?

Not only did I already have 2 unfinished projects (one of which was done (!!) until I went to block it and found a huge hole. I dismantled the whole damned thing and am starting from scratch. Sigh…), but I had to go and start yet another wrap!!

I seem to be obsessed with wraps lately… They’re easy and I love to try out new stitch patterns on them, but with their width and length so (preferably) long, it seems to take forever. Especially when trying to knit around my kids, my husband and the seemingly endless laundry! Know what I mean? But the absolute repetition is what soothes my frantic soul. Especially a simple one row repeat. I know that sounds absolutely dull to those of you out there who also enjoy knitting, but I am pretty new to this and once my fingers have memorized the pattern, the entire wrap is time for my mind to relax and drift…….. Plus, even with Southern CA being so unusually cold this winter, it’s rarely cold enough where a simple wrap won’t do the trick. And a wrap dresses up a simple tank and jeans like nobody’s business - especially when made by the wearer!! I don’t know about you, but I never feel as beautiful as I do when either pregnant (ha, done with that!) or wearing something that I have created.

My other favorite things to make are bags. The first one started as a fluke. I was a brand new knitter and practicing the seed stitch on a solitary skein of a beautiful burnt-orange. For some reason I also decided to double strand. What came out of this is a beautiful, sturdy bag that I use to carry my knitting with me. I learned to seed stitch, to do a crochet seam and to feel the absolute pride each time I pull it out. Once I figure out how to post pictures here, I’ll include a pic of my beautiful (to me, I’m sentimental) knitting bag.

So between my now three projects, I have decided that my second sock will be done by tomorrow. Wish me luck!

And I begin...!

Often, we waste all our energies on wanting something but never actually doing it. This blog is the realization of a dream for a number of years now. I love to write, to empathize and connect with others and have recently utterly fallen in love with knitting. What better way to feed these passions, and all at once, than with a blog. I would love to hear your feedback. My goal is for this to become a conversation! Just promise you'll bear with me while I figure this whole thing out!!

I am a woman, a wife and a mother. Not necessarily in that order these days, but my kids are young and so am I. This blog is MY time, my reward and my way of selfishly claiming a place in my life for me as a woman. So, while I’m starting this with the intention of writing about my journey into knitting, quite a bit of life in general may slip in.

Knitting was an obsession waiting to happen. And happen it did just over five years ago while pregnant with my first child. By luck I happened upon Knitty Gritty with Vickie Howell on the DIY network and was transfixed. As a child I’d always wanted to knit - or make anything crafty - but had no one to teach me. After a while I just resigned myself to the idea that I was just a person with no imagination who just wasn’t meant to create. Thank God I was wrong!! I knit to knit, not necessarily caring WHAT I’m knitting so long as I am doing it. I call knitting my Zen moments. It is. It clears my head and allows my creative juices to flow as well as letting my subconscious work thru all the stresses of life. It is my favorite anti-anxiety drug! I love to knit!!
Why do you knit?

Personally, I knit because I need to learn to relaaaaaax. When I knit, I can get peace, even with chaos all around. It’s like a vacation for my mind. I am one of those over-anxious types - I obsess over all the little details that I don’t necessarily have control over. I once heard someone say, “Why worry? If it’s important, worrying won’t help. But it isn’t important, than there’s no reason to worry in the first place!” (Is there a quote to that effect out there I need to know about?) I love that and remind myself of that several times a day some days. Will worrying help, ie problem solving? Or will it just drive me crazy? If crazy is my answer, I knit. Sitting down with a ball of yarn and a pattern and making fabric just inspires me. I find myself relaxing into the monotony of some projects and immersing myself in the complexities of others. The key is relaxing!! Finally, blessedly relaxing! Phew! (Not that being able to wear what you make and have others compliment you on your homemade pieces isn’t exhilarating!) But the pure gift of knitting, for me, is the gift of the space to breathe. What is knitting/crafting for you? What do you do to relax?

The ridiculous thing is, I’d love to start posting and finding a following and having some conversations, but I can’t think of a freaking name for this blog!! Grrrr…

In the meantime, whatcha knitting now?! I’ve currently gotten the second of a set of socks going (Sockotta in color 5618). This is only my third pair of socks so my rhythm isn’t down yet and I can already tell sock #2 is going to be MUCH better than #1. Hmmmmm, maybe I’ll have enough yarn to knit a third… Lol - is it just me or does anyone else do silly things like knitting 3 socks…?

I also have a wrap going as my mindless project to do while the kids are awake. It's leftover yarn from a scarf I made my mother-in-law and I love it!! I hope it stays cool enough here in S. CA for me to finish it and wear it!! It's a simple "k2,*yo,k2tog,k2, repeat from *" pattern. Nice and mindless and easy enough to put down when my 4 1/2 year old or almost 2-year-old need me.

(Just an aside, anyone have any tricks to getting everyone to leave you alone long enough to get more than a couple rows completed? For all you moms of little ones, how much time are you able to carve out of actual knitting time while the kids are awake?)

I'm currently looking for a relatively user-friendly driving or newsboy cap pattern. I taught myself, so I'm a little nervous about the brim. Any pattern ideas? Or tips in general? I'm a knitter in progress but determined!

Quiet time's up, time to play!!