First Thankful Thursday- August 1st, 2013

     Today is my first installment of Thankful Thursday and I am kind of nervous! But here is goes...
This week I am thankful for:

• My family! I have a great family! We are always there for each other through the good and the bad. They are the best friends I could ever ask for. Seriously. I would be nothing and no one without the support of my family. 
• The sound of a gaggle of kids yelling my name! This week Beth (my niece) stopped by unexpectedly, normally unexpected guests throw my anxiety into overdrive, but she brought with her 5 of my great-nieces/nephews! As they exited the car they all cheered: "AUNT CATHY!" like I was the highlight of their day! Then the kids, 8 years old to 23 months old, all ran up to me and hugged me! It was the sweetest thing! 
• My dog. A lot of people hate my dog. I have had him since he was 6 weeks old and he is turning 13-14 years old. He is a grumpy old man but, and in all fairness, was a grumpy puppy-to everyone BUT me! He is the sweetest thing really. He barks and tries to intimidate everyone but that is because he is small (he is a MIN PIN/POM mix) plus he has a little vision issue because of his age. The other day I was feeling crappy (not physical but emotionally and mentally) and my dog crawled on my lap and hugged me. He put his head back on my chest and just laid there. Tell me how can people hate a dog that hugs?

Isn't he adorable?

• Knitting. Without knitting I do not think I could make it through the week. It calms me, soothes me, challenges me, and flexes my mental acuity. Not to mention that I get to create lovely items for friends and family. This week is all about my nieces, Brie's, soon-to-be born son. The shower is on August 11th so I am in the process of making gifts. So far I have made an afghan and a baby hat (check back later for a blog post...and for a sneak peek...check Instagram!) and am in the process of a pillow (for decorative purposes!) and maybe something else...

    Phew...I did it! I finished my first Thankful Thursday! It was not as bad as I thought! Check back next Thursday for another installment!!! What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursdays starting in August...

     If you know me personally then you know that I have struggled for years with a horrible anxiety/panic disorder. As a child I was what was considered back then as "shy"-painfully shy. I remember hiding behind my moms legs whenever we came in contact with someone new. I remember trying everything I could do as a teenager to be invisible-in fact, my only goal as a teenager was to be invisible as much as possible. As an adult my acute shyness has not disappeared but has morphed into an anxiety/panic disorder. I have learned more effective coping skills for my anxiety than the highly unlikely chance of becoming invisible-barring some industrial accident that is! The funny thing about my disorder is that if you know me, are in my select circle of family and friends, you can easily forget that I suffer from it everyday. I am loud, outspoken, well-spoken, educated, semi-intelligent, funny, and generous. When I am with people in my comfort zone (family mostly but a couple of friends as well) it is easy to overlook that I am battling terror on a regular basis, that I have an over-inflated sense of flight or fight responses, or that I have difficulty being as "normal" as regular people. Certain "normal" aspects of other people's lives terrify me-meeting new people, having unrehearsed, unsolicited conversations with strangers, stepping away from my regular routine, and any changes with my "comfort zones" (home and families houses) without adequate time to adjust will leave me reeling-I literally shut down. I am sharing all this information because I think it is time for me to look for the positive aspects in my life instead of dwelling on my anxiety/panic disorder and how to not activate the fear I have.
     Starting in August I will begin a new segment in my blog called Thankful Thursdays. Every Thursday I will list my blessings and anything positive that has occurred in my life. My goal is to have a written record of the blessings I have in my life on a daily basis (a summary will be posted on Thursdays but will be a cumulative list from the week!) so that when times get bad (and they will) I can look back on something positive. Sometimes I will post pictures as well so that I will have a visual record.
     I know I do not have a lot of readers on this blog and that is okay...I am not writing this for anyone but me; however, if you like it that is just icing on the cake! I will continue to add knitting posts, family posts, and other stuff that happens in my life on here so do not worry...stay tuned for my first Thankful Thursday...
   

I am on Instagram now too!!!

   
Check out my new badge on the right!
I am now on Instagram! I want to thank Emmy166 on Ravelry.com for walking me through how to add a badge onto my blog!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I think this is going to make it so much easier to add pictures to my blog. Also I have started a blog on wordpress.com under the same name as this blog. The new blog will be similar to this one and will link to my Instagram, FB, and Twitter...now that I have finished my Master's degree (YAY! Finished on 7/1/2013 with a 3.61 GPA! So proud of myself!) I have a lot more time on my hands to update my blog and increase my Internet presence.

Thank you so much for sticking with me, readers and family, as I neglected my blog for studies but I am back now and will be posting on a regular basis!

Pinwheel blanket

I am trying to expand my knitting so I have learned how to make socks (ONE PATTERN DOES COUNT!), how to use a chart, and how to use crocheting in my knitting (edges DO count!). Another thing I wanted to accomplish is learning how to knit a circle. I found a pinwheel blanket pattern on Ravelry.com and bought the perfect yarn: a giant cone of Peaches and Creme yarn. Making the blanket was not as bad as I though and there is only one or two mistakes in my blanket (NOT THE PATTERN!). I had fun making it and even though it does not have an owner, yet, I still love how it looks and feels.

close-up of color

Look closely...do you see the mistake?

Carmen's doll

   

My great-niece, Carmen (her pics dot this blog!) turned 8 years old in March. For her birthday I bought her a doll that looks like her and is kind of an American Girl-type doll. As soon as I gave her the doll she changed her hair style and the doll now sleeps with her every night. As a knitter I could not simply go to a store and buy her an outfit that all little girls have access to! Knitters are unique! So I set out to make Carmen's doll a handmade outfit. I scoured the Internet and looked all over Ravelry.com but nothing really jumped out at me. Most outfits are too winter-y or odd colored or bulky. I wanted to make her a cute little summer-y outfit. So using several different patterns for sizing and fit I made Carmen a 3 piece outfit: panties, tank top, and mini-skirt. The doll in the picture IS NOT Carmen's doll but is my model (my niece, Kirsten's American Girl-type doll who I still owe an outfit to because she let me borrow her!)

3 piece outfit-the panties were thongs until I crocheted a nice little edge on them!

NOT Carmen's doll but my clothes model

Socks for my sister!

I have learned how to make socks BUT can only figure out how to knit them using one pattern...Incredibly Easy Socks (can be found on Ravelry.com). However, socks there are so many different types and colors of  yarn that I really do not mind only being able to master one sock pattern. My sister is fully addicted to my handmade socks and I have to say that she owns every pair I have ever made (all 3 of them!) The pair I call Opposite Socks were made using sock yarn purchased at Joann's for 97 cents, I think it is Patons. I call them Opposite Socks because the way that the colors changed for each sock-almost a mirror of each other. The next socks I call Pink Summer Socks because the yarn is thin and perfect for cool evenings in the summer. I bought the yarn from Big Lots for 80 cents!! I am working on sock 2 now!!!

Here are some pictures of my latest socks:

Opposite Socks!!!! Made with 97 cent sock yarn-Patons

See my ladybug row counter? Pink Summer Socks

I turned the HEEL!

Obligatory foot and half finished sock picture

Yes, I see the laddering! LOL! Pink Summer Socks

See? It all worked out!!!!

These hats may not be appropriate for children (no NUDITY!)...but I think they are awesome!

Here are some more projects I have been working on! I am trying to teach myself how to use charts as well as create simple charts. I figured a simple hat pattern would be the best and I stumbled upon the Weed Chart on Ravelry.com and thought I would try it out. The first nine pictures are made from the Weed Chart using Red Heart yarn. The second hat is my own chart that I generated using a free chart generator. It is made with a really super soft black yarn (no label) and the green is Red Heart. I learned a lot by making the same design. How to do floats, how to follow the chart, and how to hold my tension.
Warning: my hat may not be appropriate for children!

The hand is my 4 yr old great-niece-HELPING

This is my new FOAM HAT HEAD

This is so much fun!

The stem is a little WONKY

Getting closer to the end

The bottom leaves are a little weird

Really HUGE finished hat!

Close-up of WONKY stem-my fault not pattern

Side view! Look how long!!!

MY OWN DESIGN-love rolled brim

MY OWN DESIGN-LOVE IT

OK so I messed up a little but it so GREAT!