Wordless Wednesday

Gratitude Monday

Today's affirmation:
Use your imagination not to scare yourself to death but to inspire yourself to life.

-Adele Brookman

I am grateful for.....
1. Family time
2. cooking with my daughter
3. a husband who lightens my load
4. fluffy white snow flakes
5. laughter
6. good food
7. good books
8. quiet time
9. the sounds of a quiet night
10. courage to try challenging things

If at first you don't suceed, try, try again!

I have always hated failing. And nothing sends a bigger red flag in my face then telling me "I can't" do something. It always makes me try harder.

Lately I have been attempting to expand my knitting abilitities. Some things are more challenging than others. I have made dish clothes, knit with novelty yarn, and felted and enjoyed each new adventure. However, knitting socks was not so successful.



These were my first attempt. Love the colors but the technique needs a lot to be desired. The heels pull funny, and the socks ended up being way too big in the foot and tight around the calf. I was disheartened.

The socks didn't go to waste...they are now around the house slipper socks. And I told myself I would try again.

Fast forward almost 2 years. One of my knittingparents buddies gifted me with some gorgeous handpainted yarn and a pattern to make socks and loads of encouragement to get started. With a little apprehension I cast on and so far so good.

Looking great actually!

Wordless Wednesday

If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path

My grandmother was an only child of poor farmers. They lived with very little but had lots of love. When she was in her early teens, it was decided to sell the family farm and move. She and her mother went to live with relatives in Kimberly, British Columbia, while her father travelled to around Calgary, Alberta to purchae another farm. That was the last she ever saw or heard from her father!

It was her one great heartache of life - never knowing what happened to this man. This happened at the beginning of the Depression and she was required to quite school and go work as home help just to help her mother make ends meet. To many this may not be much however, my grandmother had a great talent. She could look at a dress and make an exact copy with no pattern but what she saw in her mind. Her plan had been to be a designer but this would never happen.

I was always amazed at how she could make something good out of any bad situation. This was not her last sorrow in life but she never let it get her down.

She generously opened her home to me as an infant and I never went without, even though often she did. Hardships to her always had silver linings and there was always someone worse off than her who could use her help. She always had an extra plate at the table, coat to give or shoulder to help carry the burden.

Grandma Sarah always reminded me that it was my duty to help others. She actually was the first person who ever told me to pay it forward. Whenever she helped someone she never wanted anything in return. Her words were always.."help the next person who needs it. That is all I want."

Those words ring in my ears as true today as they did back when she was saying them.
As I was browsing my weekly blog reading I came across one that told me about Project Compassion



This is a group that was formed to help others in need. The first project for this group was to help 2 members of a family who lost 3 others in a terrible vehicle accident on December 23. It was decided that a blanket was to be created for each of the surviving members.

To know more about this family read

The project sound just like something my grandmother would of supported and encouraged. So I rummaged through my yarn drawer and found a dusty pink just waiting. Why was this the one? It was my grandmother's favorite color - it was just destined to be. I made four squares and shipped them off to be lovingly stitched together with others to wrap this family in the warmth compassion of others.



So if you are looking for something to make your knitting extra special drop by Project Compassion and help out in their next endeavor.

Gratitude Monday

This week's affirmation:

If you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten.

-Anonymous

I am grateful for.....

1. warmer weather
2. walks with the family
3. giggles from my husband and daughter
4. projects completed
5. comforting foods
6. movies that make me think about life
7. holidays to enjoy with my daughter
8. "The Secret"
9. looking for the positive
10. snuggling by a fire

Happy Chinese New Year

The Year of the Pig






1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007


People born in the Year of the Pig are chivalrous and gallant. Whatever they do, they do with all their strength. For Boar Year people, there is no left or right and there is no retreat. They have tremendous fortitude and great honesty. They don't make many friends but they make them for life, and anyone having a Boar Year friend is fortunate for they are extremely loyal. They don't talk much but have a great thirst for knowledge. They study a great deal and are generally well informed. Boar people are quick tempered, yet they hate arguments and quarreling. They are kind to their loved ones. No matter how bad problems seem to be, Boar people try to work them out, honestly if sometimes impulsively. They are most compatible with Rabbits and Sheep.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Gratitude Monday

Today's affirmation:

Wisdom is, and starts with, the humility to accept the fact that you don't have all the right answers, and the courage to learn to ask the right questions.

-Unknown

I am grateful for....
1. For small errands or jobs hubby does without complaint
2. the laughter of my daughter
3. Snow and all the moisture it will provide for the plants in the spring
4. Understanding friends
5. quiet moments
6. family thoughts
7. dreams of tomorrow
8. the crystals formed on the trees from the cold
9. the internet and the circle of people it brings together
10. curiosity

M & M in all of us

What's yours?

Beware of the man of one book

The more that you read,the more things you will know.

The more that you learn,the more places you'll go.

~ Dr. Seuss ~

Books have always been a safe place for me to journey. As far back as I can remember books have been in my life. Other than bible story books, my first book was a collection of nursery rhymes. The book is well loved with its fall out pages and aged look...but it sits proudly among my collection of favorites. I still remember my Grandmother reading me the stories everytime I asked and then me thumbing through the pages and reciting what I had been told moments before.

When I turned seven, my Grandfather grabbed my hand one day and took me for a walk. We sauntered across town to a building nesseled close to the police station. It reminded me of the house you imagine when you read Hansel and Gretal. Inside was a treasure beyond your wildest imagination....inside was a warehouse of books. My Grandfather had decided that I was old enough to have my own library card. This acquisition was the beginning of a love affair. I travelled weekly to that house of books. Inside I journeyed to places only a mind can go. I went on adventures with the Bobbsey Twins and Nancy Drew. I visited the characters created by Enid Blyton, Mark Twain and Barbara Cartland. I caught a glimpse of the lives of Elizabeth I and Henry VIII.

As a young mother I started reading to Sheridan at a young age as well. I surrounded her with brightly colored books and crazy characters. And as I read to her, I just increased my love of literature.

2007 was started with a goal for reading for myself. I was going to read, read, read!!!!

To accomplish that goal I.....

Joined TBR challenge.

The object of this group is to choose 12 books that you have been meaning to read for atleast 6 months and finish them within the year.

TBR challenge books

1. The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

2. Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

3. The Tin Flute by Gabrielle Roy

4. East of Eden by John Steinbeck

5. Eragon by Christopher Paolini

6. For one more day by Mitch Albom

7. The Other Boelyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

8. The Measure of a Man by Sidney Poitier

9. The Gods of Newport by John Jakes

10. The Stand by Stephen King

11. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

12. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Alternate List

1. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

2. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

3. Inside my Heart by Robin McGraw

4. California Gold by John Jakes

5. The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy

6. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

7. Streets of Riches by Gabrielle Roy

8. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

9. Night by Elie Wiesel

10. The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank

11. Little Women by Louise May Alcott

12. Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

Also all selections chosen for the Knitting to the Classics

I also joined Knitting the Classics. It is a group that chooses one classic book to read each month and combine with knitting if we should so desire.

With these goals and a love of reading...it should be a good year.

Wordless Wednesday