Christmas Tree Happiness

Barton and I decorated the tree tonight, and I love the way it turned out. Beth gave us our first couple ornament a week or two ago, and it has a place of honor near the top of the tree =)

Faith

I need to not be so pms-y and have a little faith. My swap package was received, and apparently well loved, so I got grumbly over nothing. I think I shall blame the crazy hostess of the retirement party I had to attend yesterday evening for my mood. I'm gonna miss Daryl, but it'll be nice to no longer have to deal with his wife and her delusions. Now for a happy Friede pic (I have so got to make me one of these)...

Grumbly Musings

I've participated in three swaps now, and I'm not sure I'll do any others. The first two were massive swaps making quilt blocks and quilted postcards for quite a large number of people. I didn't particularly enjoy it, but I thought my issues might just be the scale. So, I signed up for a small scale ornament swap where I just have to make things for one person. I was quite pleased with the package I received, and I thought things were going well with the package I sent. I wanted to create something unique and different, that fit within things that she seemed to like. Apparently, I missed the mark. I haven't actually heard from her, but I know she's been online, and I know her package was delivered two days ago. Even if she's been busy, a quick note to say she got it doesn't seem like too much to ask. She may have it and love it, she may have it and hate it, or something may have gone oddly wrong with the post office, and she may not have it at all. I'm just bummed I don't know something. I loved the little ornament I made, and could easily have kept it for myself. Perhaps I'm just selfish, but the experience hasn't been as satisfying as I thought it would be.

Monogamous Knitting Woes

I have been attempting to stay focused on my Christmas knitting since mid-November, and I must say, I've done fairly well. I've finished a couple, and made good progress on others. I *ahem* joined a fun and quick ornament swap to shake things up a bit, but that was a rather small loss of present-time in the grand scheme of things. I have to say, though, that I am incredibly bored. The pressure to finish the presents I'm fairly certain I have the time to finish, and the strength to resist casting on those that I don't think I'll have time for is driving me crazy. The big culprit in all of this is the shawl I promised to make Mamaw...like before Easter. I had nearly an entire year to do it, but didn't get serious about giving it to her for Christmas until all of the moving insanity (which, for the record, is the exact wrong time). I happen to love the way the 40% of the shawl that I've finished looks, and everyone in the family who I've shown it to seems to gush over it. I just don't think I'm cut out for this one project at a time mentality. I miss my piles of wips waiting for me to pick them up and give them a few hours of my time, and then happily going back on the shelf while I give the next project a little love. I miss my variety. In theory, I think Christmas knitting is a nice idea, but I don't know that I'll ever put this pressure on myself again. If I make things for people in the future, it'll be because I just feel like doing it, and they'll get it whenever it works out.

Joy Journal

I was reading an article on dealing with stress and anxiety, and one of the things they recommended was keeping a joy journal. Their thought is that writing down small moments of delight will help put troubles in perspective. I found this super cute little reporter-style journal a few weeks ago while Christmas shopping, and couldn't resist buying it for myself (even though I have a ton of empty journals piled up around the house). It came with the words "Everything starts somewhere. Here's your somewhere". The two ideas seem too perfect for me to ignore. I started my joy journal yesterday with a nice make-me-smile Oreo moment. It's small and rugged enough to travel with me in my purse, so I shouldn't ever really find myself without it. I'm excited to be able to look back months from now, and smile at my happy moments =)

Reformatting

Having three blogs to maintain is a bit much, so I've changed it up a bit. I'll keep spot thief, but make it private, and use it for journaling things I don't quite want to share with the entire world. The rest of it will go here. A little crafting, a little gardening, and probably quite a few cat pics.

I'm in the process of knitting up my Christmas gifts. I've managed to finish 2 of them, but still have 4 to go. Once I've worked my way through that, I have a couple of items I want to make for the wedding, but I may run out of time. I've got my fingers crossed that it works out. I am also making plans for the things I hope to accomplish next year. I've set aside yarn in bags with pattern names for the Personal FG Club, and I may set up a few more with random small projects to keep me entertained throughout the year. I would also like to spin up some of that fiber Heather sent me, and quilt a wall hanging.

Now that I'm in the house, I feel like life is starting to settle down. The cats/dog integration is going as well as could be expected, and I think we're getting to where we can all coexist. Friendship will hopefully come in time, but for now I'm quite excited by indifference. The wedding plans are coming together as well. The biggest thing still hanging is what I'm going to wear ;) I'm thinking I might get started on that one next weekend. Should be something to look forward to!

Ravelympics Day 1 - Finally Casting On!

Today I cast on for my Morris Island Hand Warmers, using the pattern, Pretty Lace Hand Warmers from The Purl Bee blog. I didn't get to cast on right at 8, because I unfortunately have to work today, but I did take a quick break around 9 to cast on and knit the first few rows 0=) I'm using some hand painted silk/merino yarn that I bought when Barton and I went on vacation to Charleston this past spring. I love the look and feel of it, and I think the hand warmers will work up beautifully.

I have a doctor's appointment early this afternoon do some testing to see if I have asthma, and then Barton and I will be house hunting, so I also brought my Lulu Mitts along to work on in case I finish the MIHW, but still find myself waiting. I don't really expect that to happen, but a girl can dream, right? ;)