12.31.2008
12.30.2008
Five Golden Rings


Posted by
Rebecca
at
8:35 AM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.29.2008
The MUM Organizes Her Mind
With the hustle and bustle of Christmas behind me and the New Year before me, I've had time to slow down, take my thoughts captive and ponder the year. "Taking your thoughts captive", have you ever contemplated that? This is something I continually tell myself and encourage others to do. Have you ever considered that, by changing a negative thought into a positive one, you can get a whole new perspective about your life and your surroundings? It has taken me a lifetime to learn this and I continue to grow in this area. It's been a hard journey since I tend to over analyze things and look at the cup as half-empty instead of half-full.

The key word here is 'reasonable' since I have a tendency to set lofty goals, far more than one can get done in a day.....that is, and still knit!
I love reading my old journals but I have been far too sporadic in my writing through the years. This is something I highly regret. This year I will write but not feel pressure to write in it every day.
I don't have a struggle scheduling quiet times to read and study my Bible because I find great comfort and guidance in it. However, this year I would like to spend more time meditating and praying which requires that I don't let the pressing duties of life cut this short.
This has been very difficult lately since I have a recurring ankle injury. I need ideas on how to continue exercising in a non-aerobic way, perhaps yoga. And, I know I need to do some weight bearing exercises for my bones.
Of course, since I do not work outside my home and since my children are grown, I have more free time than most do but I would like to start going to my LYS to knit with other knitters and develop some knitting friendships.
Clutter control! Unfinished knitting projects! Unfinished scrapbooks!
And I when I seize control of my time I would also like to be a good steward of it. I will set goals and then break them into doable daily To Do's.


Unfortunately, I've kicked over a few beehives this year. The consequences have been ones of growth for me and, even more fortunately, the beehives have been kicked over on people who love me and are willing to work through conflicts. I'm resolving to be more positive this year and less critical in the lives of all those I know.

Posted by
Rebecca
at
10:59 AM
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Labels: An Organized Year
Four Calling Birds


Posted by
Rebecca
at
8:39 AM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.28.2008
Three French Hens

however, I wasn't thinking of French Hens but Cat Mittens.................

The verdict is still out on these. They may be frogged on December 6th because they are a wee small. The pattern is fun but I think it may work better with a sportweight yarn instead of a fingering weight yarn, we'll see.
Posted by
Rebecca
at
1:18 PM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.27.2008
Two Turtle Doves


Posted by
Rebecca
at
12:18 AM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.25.2008
A Partridge in a Pear Tree
And while he was doing that, I resumed knitting the MAD WEAVE SOCKS with the yummy Lorna Laces sportweight yarn.

12 days to work on unfinshed projects!

Posted by
Rebecca
at
12:43 PM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.24.2008
12.22.2008
The Twelve Days of Christmas


Starting December 26th and the eleven days thereafter, you are to focus on unfinished projects and not cast on anything new. Twelve days of getting those needles free so that we can enter 2009 afresh! Perfect! Can you envision how wonderful that will be? Come join me! It is only twelve days of focused knitting...........
Posted by
Rebecca
at
12:24 PM
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Labels: Twelve Days of Christmas
12.17.2008
Knitting Technique: Chain Selvedges


- Right-side rows: slip knitwise first and last stitches
- Wrong-side rows: purl first and last stitches.
I block my scarves by putting them in a zippered sock bag and washing them in cold water on the delicate cycle of my washing machine. If I have Eucalin around, I use it but if I don't have any I use Woolite. Then I put my puzzle foam pieces together for the length I need (I love these things) and pin them to the shape and length I want.

Both scarves are for my newlyweds and are on their way to Tennessee. By the way, the second scarf is the Yarn Harlot's One Row Scarf made with Malabrigo yarn. It is for my daughter. The Noro scarf is for my new son-in-law. And while I'm giving you all the pertinent facts I might as well tell you that my very favorite needles for knitting scarves are the 9" Takumi needles by Clover. I have sizes ranging from US 5-9 and they rest in a jar that one of my daughters decorated when she was a little girl, priceless to me now.
Posted by
Rebecca
at
12:50 PM
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Labels: Christmas Presents, Knitting Techniques, Scarves
12.15.2008
Holiday Baking
Posted by
Rebecca
at
1:39 PM
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Labels: Holiday Baking
An Elf Makes An Elfin Scarf
Like many of you, I have been a busy little elf knitting Christmas presents. It doesn't look like I'm going to make the deadline on a few of them having not factored into the knitting-timeline-equation that most presents have to be mailed this year. How many Christmas Eves have you stayed up late trying to finish that one special gift? Guess I won't this year. Guess someone will get a post-Christmas package or two. Bummer. But, I did finish my mom's Elfin Scarf late last night and will share it with you (Merry Christmas, Mom!).




This elf must get back to some more Christmas knitting, baking and decorating. Did you notice in one of the pictures that my tree is up but has nothing on it?
Posted by
Rebecca
at
9:56 AM
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Labels: Christmas Presents, Scarves
12.04.2008
How Does My Garden Grow?
Mary, Mary quite contrary, how does your garden grow?



Posted by
Rebecca
at
6:53 PM
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Labels: Ravelry, Restricted Knitting, Scarves
12.03.2008
My Shepherd
I am speaking at a ladies' Christmas church function on Saturday and my topic is 'Why a Shepherd?'
I've been spending lots of time this week researching sheep and shepherding. I've selected special music to accompany the devotion and happened upon this beautiful song by Michael Card, one of my favorite musicians. I wanted to share it with you although I know many of you do not share my faith. For those who do, I hope you enjoy it!
Posted by
Rebecca
at
2:52 PM
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12.01.2008
Personal Sock Club 2009
This morning I read about the Ravelry Stash Knit Down 2009 group on Theresa's blog. The plan this year is to knit 100 balls of yarn. I did a quick calculation in my mind of all the upcoming projects I have planned and realized that this is a goal within my grasp. So, I hopped on over to Ravelry and saw some great sub-groups to cheer this endeavor on.
The Personal Sock Club 2009 really grabbed my attention because I have way too much sock yarn that has been accumulating through the years and far too many patterns that I have longed to knit. Unfortunately, those patterns never get attention because I've been focusing on whatever challenge Socknitters Anonymous has going on for each month. This has left me with little time to knit the patterns that I have bookmarked.
Now, don't get me wrong - Socknitters Anonymous has exposed me to several designers that I would not have known about had I not been participating. But the negative side of that exposure is that the designers I love get no attention at all from my pointy sticks. The idea behind the Personal Sock Club is that you package up in a brown paper bag a sock pattern with accompanying yarn and staple the top. You do this for each month of the year and then select a 'mystery bag' each month. I like this idea. You KNOW you will like the sock and you are knitting down that massive stash!
I spent the morning combing through patterns I have printed off and sock books and came up with fourteen pairs of socks that I MUST knit this year. Then I picked stash yarn for each pattern and packaged them all up together. Thirty-two balls of yarn all in brown bags ready to go for 2009! I am going to call this Brown Bag Mystery Socks. Mix them up! I'm ready to go come January 1, 2009.
Now I'm off to figure out the other sixty-eight balls of yarn. Which ones will make the cut?
Posted by
Rebecca
at
2:00 PM
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Labels: Personal Sock Club 2009, Stash Knit Down