Photo a Day: Made Me Smile Today

So, that worked well, huh?  Photo a Day must actually mean Photo a Fortnight, because that's how long it's been.  Oh, well.  I never did promise perfection. ;o)

Yesterday's prompt was "Made You Smile Today".  My new hobby sure makes me smile.  I've wanted to learn how to weave for years.  It seems to me to be a natural progression from knitting to spinning to weaving.  I think I'm an odd type of learner in that I seem to learn best by watching videos or reading about how to do something for months before I actually try it.  I learned about the types of looms and how they work and what you can do with each and then watched video after video on youtube of others weaving on the type of loom I'd decided on.  I then spent weeks thinking about weaving and imagining what it would be like to weave and what I would make on a loom.  So, when I received my new loom and got it all assembled (also learned through video) I felt like I'd done it all before.

My friend, Abby, came over to visit when I was just beginning so I got to verbally overload her with all the stuff I'd been learning, and she got to witness the insanity that is me learning a new skill.  I've had people compliment me before on my knitting or crocheting or stamping and say how talented I am.  I don't know about all that.  I do think that because I throw myself, often quite headlong, into learning new skills that interest me, I tend to look like less of a beginner than I am because, let's face it, not everyone tries weaving lace on their 10th row ever.  I simply don't know any better. ;o)

with love from me

Dear Me-at-15,

I know for you 20 years seems like a lifetime, but from my perspective it's been a blink of the eye.  And yet, I barely remember being a teen, though I still feel all the old familiar insecurities at times.

You've just returned from a Girl Scout trip to Montana where you spent 3 weeks with other girls from all over the country.  It was your first time out in the big world "all alone" and you totally rocked it!!  I know it seems impossible now, but you'll lose touch with every single girl from that trip, although the memories will never leave you.  They'll shape how you view not only the greater world, but yourself as well.

My YFC Northern Ireland ministry team. I'm in the stripes front and center.

Your confidence will lead you to go even further next summer...to Northern Ireland with Youth For Christ.  Don't be afraid to step out in faith.  This trip will stretch you more than anything to date.  You'll have to speak to strangers about your faith and really own it personally.  Throw yourself fully into the experience and make purposeful memories you'll cherish for years to come.  From the other members of your team you'll learn how small your view of God is and your heart and mind will grow so much in 3 weeks you'll hardly recognize the person who returns.

High school's pretty torturous, I do remember that.  You just keep being you and don't worry about living up (or down) to whatever they expect. You tend to worry too much about what others think. Hold tight to the person God created you to be and don't compromise.  That said, there's no need to put so much pressure on yourself to be perfect.  God loves you far more than you could ever imagine or understand.

High School graduation day.  Showing off our honor cords.

After a bit of waffling and floundering, you'll attend an amazing Bible College where you'll learn even more about God and others and yourself.  A word of warning: After your freshman year you'll feel like a Bible genius.  Don't let it go to your head.  Just because you know so much more than you did a year ago doesn't mean everyone else is Bible-dumb or that you don't have tons more to learn.  You'll spend your whole life learning from and about the Lord and never know it all.

I'd love to be able to warn you about poor decisions to shield you from hurt, but the truth is, everything in your life is there for a purpose.  Every experience and person and triumph and failure will contribute to the person you'll become.  You'll learn patience and trust and how to be comfortable in your own skin.  So, I wouldn't wish any of them away or change one moment of the years to come.

Just two more words of advice before the portal closes and I must go.  First, cut your parents some slack.  They're human, not perfect.  They love you so much and only want what's best for you.  Trust their judgement and learn from and about them.  It will greatly expand your understanding of how they became who they are.  Second, on Christmas Eve 1997 you won't want to go to lunch at Eat 'n' Park but you will.  You won't be looking for or expecting it, but that's the day you'll meet your husband.  He's everything you've hoped for and more.  God sure knows what He's doing. ;o)

Now, get back to band practice.  Enjoy these days.  They're shorter than you think.

Love,

         Me-at-35

Linking up with Emily at Chatting at the Sky to help her introduce her new book Graceful for young women.

yarn along update

If nothing else, Ginny's Yarn Along is getting me to post more often. haha  I do enjoy seeing what others are working on and reading.

I'm still working on the same books as last time: A little further in the Lord of the Rings, not so much in the others.

I'm making great progress on my Baby Quill Shawl/Blanket, however.

4 days confined to home after an outpatient procedure made for great knitting time.  Just me, netflix and this project.  I was able to zip through all the garter stitch and the old shale border in just over a week.  All I have finished of the edging is shown in that photo.  I'm very happy with it and would love to take a full pic with it all spread out, but, alas, it's trapped on a long circular needle that's not nearly long enough to make it look like anything more than a poorly constructed bag at this point.

Tomorrow morning we venture to Pittsburgh for our final homestudy meeting with our agency, so I'll have quite a bit of time to knit on the round trip.  By tomorrow night I'm hoping it resembles more of a blanket than a bag. :)

my first yarn along

I'm, finally, linking up with Ginny at Small Things for her weekly Yarn Along where she shares what she's reading and knitting.  I've wanted to do this for weeks and always seem to think about it on Thursday, which is a day late.  So, I'm writing this Tuesday night with hope that I'll post it sometime Wednesday so I can participate. :)

On the nightstand:
I tend to have several books in progress at any one time, and now is no different.  These days my kindle is serving up regular portions of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (reading through it for the first time ever) and The Open Adoption Experience (some required reading for our agency). However, what I want to share is an actual, physical book I bought a couple weeks ago and just started reading last night.  Color in Spinning by Deb Menz has been on my must-read list for quite some time.  I love color and in this book I'm learning so much about how to use and manipulate it to achieve the results I want in my dyeing and spinning. I so enjoy learning new things.  I can just feel my brain sucking in all the colorful knowledge. 

On the needles:
I am a member of the 12 Shawls in 2012 group on Ravelry.  In case the group title isn't descriptive enough, we're each attempting to knit 12 shawls this calendar year.  On Sunday, as we drove 1 1/2 hours to meet my dad and sister for Father's Day lunch, I cast on #7.  I'm knitting my first Shetland hap shawl, the smaller version of Quill in all white for use as a baby blanket.I'm already 1/3 of the way through the center square, and while I fully expect to feel a bit comatose from all the garter stitch by the time I start the outer border, for now I'm thoroughly enjoying it.  Mindless and simple enough for a travel project and going quite quickly...so far.

right now

I shamelessly stole this idea from The Pleated Poppy:

Right now I am…

watching:  Warehouse 13 on Hulu.  I love Hulu.  It makes it possible for us to enjoy our favorite shows on our timetable...without the cost of a DVR.

eating: Dove Chocolates. mmmmm...

drinking:  apple cider.  Yeah, with chocolate.  I know.  I'm odd.  And I'm ok with that.

wearing: Jeans, a flowered black shirt, and black cardigan.  So comfy and snuggly.

avoiding:  The kitchen sink, as well as a couple Christmas projects I really should be working on...like addressing cards.

feeling: Surprisingly excited.  Tomorrow is my 35th birthday and this is the first year I'm tempted to claim "29 again".  I'll be starting my Saturday with a Santa event for co-workers' kids but ending it with a fun dinner out with an amazing group of girlfriends.  So, all in all should be a great day.  We'll just gloss over the one-year-older factor.  It's just a number, right??

missing: My friend from the October post. (Apparently, I post monthly, now.)  She really needs to move closer. ;o)

thankful:  For heat (it's really, really cold outside tonight) and the innumerable blessings in my life (despite my lack of gratitude)

weather:  According to our thermometer it's 30* outside right now.  Guess that's not really, really cold, but it's December, so, whatever.

praying: For a friend who really needs it this week.

needing: Motivation and more time to get ready for Christmas.

thinking: About The Hunger Games.  I saw the movie preview the other day and immediately thought, "I sooo want to read that now!"  I ordered it on my kindle and am thoroughly enjoying it.

loving: My new phone.  Lee upgraded and I inherited his smartphone...my first.  Today alone I've used it to text, check my email, listen to Pandora and read The Hunger Games at lunch. :)

5 minute friday...on saturday

The Gypsy Mama hosts this great weekly blog challenge called 5 Minute Friday where she throws a prompt out there and you write for 5 minutes.

Here's the description from her blog:

Got five minutes? Let’s write. Let’s write in shades of real and true and unscripted.

Let’s just write and not worry if it’s just right or not.

1. Write for 5 minutes flat for pure unedited love of the written word.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. Go leave some comment props for the five minuter who linked up before you.

So, here goes:

If you met me...

GO

You might think I have it all together, but I don't.

I'd try to bring up my infertility so you'd know that I'm not childless by choice and how much I want to be a mom.

You'd likely think I talk too much.

I'd tell you about my crazy cats and my friends' kids in an attempt to find some common ground.

I'd either spout ceaselessly about a topic I'm passionate about (knitting, spinning, adoption, my husband) or I'd clam up, worried that you won't like me for who I am.

I'd laugh at your jokes and share some of mine...mostly learned from my dad.

I might engage your adorable children or ignore them.  Neither is a reflection on you...it's just a matter of what I feel I can handle at the time.

You'd never know how badly I want to go back and edit this post...and almost everything I say.

STOP

Yikes...5 minutes was never so short before.