Look Ma - I'm blogging!

I'm so proud of myself! You know how a little kid feels when they ride their bike with no training wheels for the first time? That's kind of how I feel. I want to run out my front door and shout - "hey world - I have a blog! And I did it all by myself!" This may seem like baby steps for many but after everything that's come my way these last 8 months, I'm finding that I need to take pleasure in the little things, the little accomplishments and "fill my life basket" as a wise friend recently told me.

So...on to knitting. I've figured out how to add a flickr account to my blog with a bit of knitting goodness. To which I will add as time goes on. The problem is that much of my recent knitting have been gifts and they're no longer with me. And I've not been so good about taking pictures of my FO's. But now that will change!

With that in mind, here's a pic of a recent WEBS purchase. They're having their crazy end of year sale. Unfortunately I couldn't splurge to my heart's content but I did saitsify my craving a bit with this really cute skein of Lana Grossa sock yarn. I'm making an "Action One-Skein Hat" from a book I picked up at the library titled "Fashionable Projects for the New Knitter" by Alison Barlow. Here's the pattern and photo from the book.

Isn't this a happy hat?? This one's for me - finally. I've made 2 hats back to back for P (see slideshow) and now I'm making me a happy hat! Just looking at the skein's colors makes me happy. I was not so happy, however, getting used to the US2 circs with the sock yarn. Very small needles and very thin yarn - my cast on row was a little tight but once I got past the first row, things started to loosen up and now I don't have to struggle with the stitches. I'm sure this one won't move along as quickly as the hats I made for P, but I'm enjoying the challenge of the new yarn and unfamiliar needles.

Now, along the lines of filling my life basket, I thought I'd share a couple of images that have filled my basket in the last couple of days:

...Beautiful roses from my big brother Michael and his wonderful wife. They sent them for Christmas and they are filling me with joy. Not to mention how beautiful they look on my dining room table. I love just looking at them.

And one more thing to make me happy...a new "to go" mug!

It's ceramic and will be great for tea on the fly. I can't stand how tea tastes when you drink it from a plastic cup (as most "to go" mugs are) so this is perfect! I've already tried it out and the tea tastes like tea! Not like a chemical. As an extra treat (got to fill that life basket, right?), I also picked up some Green Tea with Pomegranite - it's great and filled with antioxidants, which I need to counteract all that stress that divorce and life throw at ya. So I'm a happy girl.

OK - now I'm gonna go and make some tea...

PS I promise...

...to add some knitting eye candy. (Just as soon as I figure out how to do it!)

Welcome to the world of blogging...

Day one: set up blog and hope that you're doing the right thing. I know there are millions of people out there who having been blogging for years...but being a private sort, I wasn't sure that blogging is for me. But hey, I thought, I've learned so much from my fellow knitting bloggers and love the peek into other's lives that it gives me (not in a creepy way - but in a new perspective way), that I thought I'd give it a whirl. Maybe my thoughts and musings about life and knitting and everything else in my world will inspire and help someone else. So here I am. Who am I, you ask? I'm a craftygrl who loves to knit, loves to read about knitting and loves to talk about knitting (which can get to be a bit much when with non-knitters (gasp!). My son, P, has also been known to roll his eyes at my knitting-ness. Just the other night, we went to see "The Golden Compass" at the movies and he just looked at me like, "are you crazy mom?" when I leaned over during the movie and told him how much I was loving seeing all the knitted items in the movie. (Really, though, if you haven't seen it, go now for there is much knitting goodness in it! The movie's not bad either.) Now, being a craftygrl, there are other crafts that intrigue me and keep me busy at times, and I'm sure I'll muse on them at some point but knitting's the bomb for me. I'm recently through a sad divorce, a job change, and a move and let me just say that I'm so grateful for all that knitting brings me. Signing off for now...