~yarnalong: The Joy of Missing Out......

~yarnalong:

I’m trying to get more consistent and settle into a rhythm that works for us in this season of life. It’s working this week- so far, so we’ll see how long it lasts. If nothing else, this is the season of being flexible, and that’s probably a good thing (and honestly, my 5 year old could use just a tad more flexibility in his life……so there’s that!)

I happened to come across this book on one of our Target runs a few weeks ago, and it’s sat on my side table since then. I finally decided that I needed to read something more grown-up and business related this month (anybody else relate?) , so it was finally time to pick this one up and read! I’m glad I did. I just started it yesterday, and am only about 4 chapters into it, but it’s already given me a lot to think about (and I finally feel the need to make a Vision Board….although part of me does want to be a rebel and do it on Pinterest, but I am also just a bit giddy thinking about making a super fun collage…..)

I’m really focusing on making my November a season of Gratitude. Taking the time to slow down and really savor each moment as it presents itself to me. I want to enjoy and embrace this season, to be present in each moment and not just rush to the next. So many times, we enter November with our minds firmly focused on the next month, on the preparations, on the celebrations, on the presents, on the getting everything ready for the Perfect Christmas, whatever that looks like to us. This year, I want to enjoy THIS moment. I want to savor THESE memories, I want to be present in this THIS. I want to cultivate a lifestyle of gratitude. I’m resisting the urge to pull out my tree and simply RUSH to the next thing. It’s taking great practice and lots of discipline to just stay put and savor this season. To let my roots really plant me in this moment. But oh, friends, the blessing in the being is just beyond words. I really really hope that you are able to savor this moment and to accept the present that the PRESENT is for you today too.

I have so so so much knitting going on around here (I even managed to finish the first chapter of my book!!! SQUEE!!! yes, a BOOK!), and I’m knitting as quickly as I can on a collection in Malabrigo that I am just over the moon excited about. This particular piece has been quite the undertaken and has actually resulted in lots and lots of ripping, re-knititng, and ripping back again. However, I’m pretty pleased with how it’s coming along and the ripping has been worth it. Sometimes we have to just keep trying and trying until we get it just right. Oh, but the just right is what makes it all worthwhile! There really is no substitute for it, nothing better. Can you guess my inspiration behind this piece (Hint: I was hoping that I’d be able to see a certain movie while knitting it for even more inspiration…….)

What are you knitting and reading this week?

~Jessica

~yarnalong: The Fall of Freddie the Leaf

~yarnalong:

Yesterday was the first day of October. Yesterday was also the day that my grandmother died. It wasn’t something that I expected, and be honest, it feels like a punch in the stomach. Or maybe just a bit like some kind of cruel joke. We just visited with her in July, and it was the first time that my kids all got to meet her. I’m just so thankful now that things worked out and we were able to make that visit (something that would have been impossible if we had still been living in Arizona). When I felt the urging to go visit with her, when I heard that soft whisper in my ear to do it, I didn’t ignore it this time, and oh how so thankful I am that I listened.

To say that today is wrought with emotions is definitely an understatement. I cried during my workout this morning…..and no, it wasn’t because it was hard (I mean, it was, a little!) and it wasn’t because I couldn’t complete the class (I even managed to push and do the best I’ve done so far), no, it was just the releasing of all the things. All the emotions, fears, memories, hurt, joy, pain, all of it…..and being in a vulnerable, raw, open state of pushing the limits, the tears just spilled out. And it’s ok. I survived. It might have taken a minute to get through it. It might have been just a bit harder to climb the stairs and get back to the kitchen, it might have taken just a little bit more water than normal to get hydrated again, but I did it.

Because God knows before we do, I had already put The Fall of Freddie the Leaf on the Kindergarten shelf to read during Circle Time this week. I actually had planned on reading it yesterday, but we got really caught up in some of our other activities and when it came around to story time, my little independent learner had his own ideas about which books he wanted to read, so I just followed his lead (and ended up reading about 10 stories instead of the 2 I had picked!). Again, timing that is beyond my comprehension.

When I noticed this one on the shelf waiting for me today, I knew that it wasn’t just a coincidence. As a snuggled up with my little one of the couch and started to read him the story, the tears started to fall, slowly, one-by-one. My little one snuggled up just a little bit closer, and gave me a tight hug. Another tear fell onto the page, and he gave me a sweet little kiss. We took a little pause, and continued on with the story when I was able. Instead of just reading a story, my little one was blessed with the opportunity to practice empathy, to be ok with being with someone while they were struggling with some really hard feelings, and he learned something that adults aren’t even capable of doing- to just BE with someone who is hurting. You can’t fix it, there isn’t a quick solution, and no amount of I’m sorry is going to make it better, but just sitting there, just being beside someone while they cry- that’s a priceless skill that I’m so thankful my Kindergartener was able to learn today.

I started this new design about a week ago- I’m pretty intrigued by it (thus why it has seemed to fly off my needles until now). I’m playing around with some shaping and some different techniques to try out a new way to use those super fun striped sock yarns. I’ll let you know how it works…..and this knitting round and round and round all the way to the end of a sleeve (hint hint!) is about all my brain and heart can manage right now, so again, it’s perfect timing. Like someone planned it all for such a time as this……

Unfortunately because we live in a fallen, broken world, there is a need for children’s books on loss (and adult books too), and while it isn’t a pleasant thing to talk about it, it is a part of life. I picked this one, The Fall of Freddie the Leaf up several years ago. I also have “I’ll Miss You Mr. Hooper” that I plan on pulling out for tomorrow. When we were working through the loss of our pets, I relied on “The Tenth Good Thing About Barney” to help my kids process their grief. I recently got a copy of Tear Soup for myself when I was struggling with the death of my other grandmother, so I’ll probably plan to spend sometime with that by myself later this afternoon. Do you have any books or resources that you’ve found beneficial in helping you, or in helping you help your children, process grief? Please share in the comments if you do!

~Jessica

How To Get Started with a Morning Basket

About a year ago, I stumbled over the concept of incorporating something called “Morning Time” into your homeschool day. At the time, it sounded like such a good thing- promises to ease your transition from Breakfast into school, a chance to bring all the children to the table, and an opportunity to touch on all those subjects that seemed to go by the wayside in that mad rush to get your day to some sort of finished place before breaking for lunch. Despite researching, and listening to podcasts, and giving it a whole-hearted go, it never really clicked for us and eventually it just got lost. When I was looking into improvements for THIS school year, I decided to start with very low expectations and to make some big changes.

The biggest change that I’ve made is that after about 6 years of using the same curriculum, I decided that we needed something different, and I started looking to make that happen. I started with what my goals for our homeschool were, what I wanted to see in the lives of my children in general, and then I found a curriculum that was in alignment with those things. Instead of buying a boxed package, I allowed myself to pick the things that worked for us where we are at in our daily lives, and what keeps us all sane while having a 5, 8 and 10 year old learning at the same time around the table. (I could talk forever about curriculum choices, so if you are interested in that, leave a note and let me know, if you have any specific curriculum questions, I’m happy to try to answer those as well!). With this shift, I noticed that I had a few things that I wanted to be sure that we didn’t miss, things that we could easily work through together as a family, and that naturally created a peaceful transition into our learning time. It also gave me an excuse to pick up a new decorative basket from the store, but shhhh, I don’t think that would be a big selling point to my husband ;)

There are no hard or fast rules about starting a Morning Basket for yourself, but the number one thing to remember is: Keep it Simple and Keep it Aligned with your goals. Our Morning Basket includes some temporary items, a few staples, and some items that I gather from the library on a weekly basis. My goal with our basket is that it provides a connecting point for all of my kids, and that there is something in the basket that makes each person happy (I’ve been lucky that so far, all of the items I’ve included have been things that all the kids enjoy!).

So, for this week, I gathered in my basket: Indescribable, by Loui Giglio. This is our daily devotional and it’s something that all the kids can get something from. I love the way that this book ties a Bible lesson with science. It really helps to set the tone for the day, and even on days where I’ve had a reluctant learner, after a few sentences in this one, I usually have a fully engaged crew. In addition to this devotional, I’ve added the new More Than Words books from MasterBooks. Since we just started this, I’m helping the kids work through them in the morning (it doesn’t take more than 15 minutes to get through a lesson), but the goal is that they will eventually be able to work through these independently, while I can savor my coffee before it gets cold for the second time, and work through my own devotional (Modeling for them really is the best form of teaching!). These workbooks give them a weekly verse to memorize, incorporate picture and poem studies, and are just all around lovely.

The Wizard of Oz is our current read aloud. (Sometimes we rotate through different books, reading a chapter out of one or both at a time, but this week we are just reading through the one). This is a great time to work in a classic that you’ve been wanting to have your kids read, to bring in a book that goes along with something you are studying (I am thinking we might work through The Egypt Game next since we are currently studying Egypt). I’m also going to be reading through books we choose to do a Brave Learner study on during this time (we did the Study on Wonder over the summer, and it was a huge hit, so I’m looking forward to having more of those literary connections with them). I find the key is to not always have to make it a “school” moment. Sometimes, you just want to read a book because you want to read it. The Wizard of Oz has been that for us, and it has opened the door for some truly organic and wonderful conversations. Even my 5 year old will talk about what we read in it during dinner! (And for the record, he doesn’t always sit still for story time, but he does every single day when we read this!)

Sidenote: I keep my basket stocked with some simple art supplies- colored pencils, gel pencils, and drawing paper. Some children focus better and can listen better when their hands are engaged in an activity. My 8 year old will use this time to color, the 5 year old might work through a re-usable sticker book (or a dry erase book), and the 10 year old will typically just listen, or work on some copywork. Be flexible and do what works for your family. At some point, I might put in some finger knitting supplies, or change it up a bit, but I’m happy to keep doing what works for as long as it works. I’ve tucked in the Draw, Write, Now books that correlate to our current History lessons for this time as well. I love the simple step by step help to learn drawing skills and I never pass up a chance for them to practice their handwriting (especially when they don’t realize what they are doing!)

In past years, I’ve wanted to add in a Music Study and Art Study, but working through another textbook, or even just getting some random books at the library didn’t really seem to get the job done. This year, I just got some easy resources, and included them in the Morning Basket. For Music, we are reading through the Story of the Orchestra, and then taking our time to learn about the different composers as we get to them. We are currently studying Vivaldi and I can share with you how we are doing that, incorporpating some living picture books and music. For these subjects: Art, Music, Inventions, I just loop them, meaning that I start with Art the first day, we read 2 pages in The Children’s Book of Art, the next day we move to the next subject and we read the next 2 pages in that book, and so on and so on.

Some of our favorite books for this week! All of these are fantastic picture books, you can’t go wrong with any of them.

Story time is one of my favorite elements in the basket. Before we shift gears and move into our core subjects (History, Science and Language Arts), I incorporate some fun with a picture book or two. I try to find something that is seasonally appropriate, so this week we are reading some fun fall stories, possibly a book I picked up just for fun at the library, and if possible, a story that connects with our current History lesson. I just added the Egyptology book for this and I might even make this be one of our Connections Lessons on a Thursday. I enjoy the extra time to really dig into a subject we are studying, especially if there is a way to add in some more project and hands on learning to it.

I wrap it all up with my current school planner (I’ve got all my school things in an Erin Condren on the go Folio, and I use a Quarterly Petite Planner to keep up with our daily tasks) Let me know if you are interested in hearing me talk more about my planning! I can go on and on and no about it. I also have a Homeschool Mom Journal that I am hoping I get to use more often while my older 2 are working in their new workbooks.

So that’s our Morning Basket in, well, a basket! Have you ever considered using a Morning Basket? What type of help would you like to get started?

The Power of the Ordinary

My biggest fear lately, if you can believe it, is the blank computer page. An empty piece of paper. The possibility of what is to come- whether it is something as huge as my book that I am supposed to be working on (oops!), the planner that I need to write out our homeschool plans for the coming week and even this space here. I literally started and re-started this post because I just didn’t know WHAT it was I wanted, or even needed to say.

Truth? I do LOVE to write. Anne of Green Gables, Jo in Little Women, even Harriet the Spy, they were my best friends, my role models, my inspiration in childhood and even beyond. I kept journals, I wrote when I traveled. I created stories, and just wrote my heart out. In the darkest of times, on the happy days, when things just didn’t even begin to make sense, and even in the ordinary- I just wrote. My favorite part of writing knitting patterns? The romance text that comes at the very beginning of the pattern and all the times that I get to share my heart with you all- whether in my posts, marketing materials, or even just in this space. No matter how many times the numbers had to be redone, the times my gauge swatch lied, or how many rounds of edits I had to go through with my editors, the writing part was my reward, it was the cherry on top, it was my happy place.

It’s been a struggle to wrestle with the why’s the words seem to be fighting me, and why I seem to tense when I sit down. I think it’s part fear and a whole lot of anxiety. Between homeschooling, staying home with my kids, and being an independent designer there is ALOT of solo existing between those three! (In addition to a lot of work, a lot of tears and just a whole lot of searching for strength somewhere!). It is hard to find the courage to be vulnerable, to be willing to share and step out into your truth, especially when it seems like everyone is against your truth. Or that your truth doesn’t matter. Or that no one is there to listen to your truth- no matter how profound, mundane, or even world-changing it might be. It’s a struggle to just keep showing up. And showing up. And showing up.

But, just like showing up everyday in your exercise program—and you know what I mean: Not just walking downstairs to your basement and saying hello to your bike, and it isn’t even just getting on the bike, or going for a short ride, NOPE. Showing up- being completely present, giving it your ALL, even when you are exhausted and would rather go back to bed, not just staying stagnant where you pushed yourself to yesterday, but being fully there and pushing through to a new height. That stuff is tough. That stuff requires you to dig deep into your core. Somedays, you’d prefer to just go back to sleep.

Somedays, somedays, this path I’m on is a lot like that. I’d rather just go back to sleep. I’d rather just take my kids outside, embrace the sunshine and spend my time ignoring the work, the deadlines. Somedays I just don’t want to wrestle with does it even matter? There are days that I waver between, goodness, I am just never going to be popular, or make a real go at this am I, AND, thank goodness that I’m just a nobody, that I feel incredibly insignificant in the grand scheme of everything.

Are you there with me? Are you in that place where you are just tired of reminding your child to not do the same thing for the twentieth time in an hour? Maybe you have been sending out resumes to get that dream job and all you have been met with is a stack of rejections that rival the size of Texas. I’ve been there. But you know what, friend? No matter how hard it is to take that next step, sometimes it is that very step is the YES that you have been searching for, waiting for, and working your tail off to hear. And sometimes, it isn’t. Another door opens, and it isn’t until MONTHS (Sometimes years later!), that you realize that this door was so much better than you could ever imagine, ever hope for, or ever even dream possible.

I know how hard the ordinary can be, dear friend. It can be exhausting, overwhelming and well, just so ordinary. But oh friend, friend, there is POWER in the ordinary! There is something special and amazing in the ordinary when we just let go. In the ordinary days, you can find joy, smiles and memories you never dreamed possible. We just have to stop fighting ourselves, stop living in fear and just be desire everything.

It can be overwhelming to scroll Instagram and see all of these amazing incredible people that SEEM to have it ALL, whether it is the homeschool mom who has incredible lessons, who has impeccable unit studies on birds, flowers and weather that they seem to have whipped up out of thin air (and goodness do I wish that was my gifting!), maybe you feel frozen by the knits that you see when you scroll, you wonder how someone finds the time to knit all those perfect stitches, with no mistakes on the horizon, with yarn you would just be overwhelmed to knit with, or maybe it’s a designer that seems to have it ALL, and you are just hoping for one comment on your new release, feeling oh so very alone for stepping out of your comfort zone and putting your heart into the stitches. If that is you friend, know that I see you. I hear you. My heart is breaking for you, and if you were here, I’d pour you a cup of coffee and share my heart with you.

But since, I can’t, I hope that this somehow encourages you. It’s OK to just be where you are. It’s ok to not have the perfect lessons plans. It’s OK to spend your afternoon letting your kids craft their own spaceship out of an old shipping box, and then let them pretend they are heading to the moon themselves. That’s the power of the ordinary. You leave space for the magic to seep in and to weave its memories. It’s ok to knit what makes you happy. It’s ok to venture off and do it your way. If you want to change something, do it. If you realize that you are never going to wear that sweater you started simply because everyone else was knitting it, it’s ok to stop and knit something else.

In the ordinary we find our voice. In the ordinary we give ourselves space to get out of our own way. In the ordinary we can be. And hopefully in the ordinary we let go of the things that are hurting us, sometimes realizing that is our own selves.

So friend, what can you take joy in today? What is the power of your ordinary that you are going to step into today? I can’t wait to see!

~Jessica

The Importance of REST!

In case you didn’t know it (and I am sure if you’ve been around for any length of time!), you know how much I LOVE picture books! My favorite part of our school day is when I just pull a picture book off the shelf and make time for an impromptu, for absolutely no reason other than it brings me joy, Read Aloud time of fun. I have found that if I keep a nice stack of them on my Library shelf (and if I make sure to grab a few during our weekly visit to the library!) that I’m more likely to make this important “hook” of our day happen. Having a picture book is a great break time and it’s makes those natural transitions from something that is more “fun” (our current science book!) into something less fun (English!) for my kiddos. (I try to keep these transition picture books more geared towards fun, and less geared towards being a “tie-in” to our current spine, or area of study! Lately, I’ve bee gravitating towards books that have a more Fall theme, especially as my kiddos are eagerly awaiting their first real fall! )

I could go on and on and on about my love of picture books! I mean really, what is NOT to love? It’s a natural, and easy way to introduce children to vocabulary, to concepts you want them to learn anyways, and there is typically a fun story, with amazing pictures to hold everybody’s interest (and I find that the picture books are the ones they will all grab off the shelf without being asked to, or told to go grab a book! Win/win, right?)

And this morning, this momma remembered a very important lesson thanks to Flora’s Very Windy Day, by Jeanne Birdsall (I highly recommend this picture book, by the way! Super sweet story, and very realistic sibling relationship playing out in the story, with of course, a very important lesson!). What struck me, though, was this poor momma. She is clearly tired, worn out by her arguing children (who I can tell from experience are really just trying to get her attention!), and she’s got what looks like a pile of work, and I can only imagine (again from experience!), a very cold, already warmed twice, cup of coffee…..it’s like the story of my life (not to mention the whole problem is set off because the little brother has destroyed something of his sisters because, of course she has not put it away out of her little brother’s reach…..which my daughter pointed out is the exact same issue we have on a daily basis in our house…….)

While there are so many things that I could share with this momma, or even tell her if we were able to get away for a cup of coffee together, the most important thing, and what I’ll share with you, is REST! This momma clearly needs some rest (as we all do!). Are you feeling frazzled, like you are doing it all, like things are just running at 120 plus miles per hour, and there is so much to do and not enough time to get it all done? Well, when was the last time you RESTED? Rest is GOOD. Rest is important, rest is even holy, blessed by God himself!

We recently studied the days of Creation in detail, and all of my children were quick to point out that on the Seventh Day God rested. My fifth grader was very astute in his observation, because he pointed out, God does not need to sleep. God does not need to eat. Yet, God had just spent 6 days Creating- making everything from scratch (EVERYTHING! I get pretty excited these days because I can make Scones from scratch, but WOW! God literally made every particle, ion, every little everything from nothing, and it was GOOD, sometimes my scones are a little less than good…..but everything He made was GOOD!). He was doing important work. Good work. Vital work. All the things kind of work……..does that sound familiar? How many of us are doing all the things? Whether it is ALL the home things, all the schooling things, all the work things, all the all the all the……..and it is exhausting! Rest. Rest is good.

When we are doing all the things, and walking around completely exhausted, we aren’t able to take that moment to breathe in the fall air. We don’t notice the leaves subtly changing colors. We don’t hear the sweet, I love you the last numbers, that our five year old whispers to us in his sleep…….we miss so much. And then the little things, the little fights between our children, the upset with their spelling words, that post we needed to get written like yesterday- it all seems so much bigger, so much more difficult, so much more than it really is. Rest.

I know how hard it is to rest. Trust me! We have never lived near family, and almost immediately, I’ve juggled more children than I had hands to tend to. But if you don’t show your children how to rest, how will they ever learn how to rest? It’s so easy to get caught up in all the have to’s, the to do lists and planning all the plans, but maybe what we need most is to take a breath and rest.

Find those moments of rest in your days, in your weeks and in your month. They are little presents just waiting for you to receive them! For our daily rhythm of rest, we all take the 15-20 minutes after lunch to sit in the living room, we either have quiet reading time, or we listen to an audio book together while working on a puzzle, or coloring, sometimes even having a cup of hot tea. For weekly rest, I plan my week so that do a 4-day school week, meaning that every Friday is my day to reset. I have time to plan for the coming week, to sort out what worked during the week and what didn’t. I also plan at least one day of rest a month so I can really reset and focus.

So my hope for you today sweet friends is that you are able to find rest. That you remember that your worth doesn’t come from what you are making, creating, or even your business, YOU are valuable beyond measure simply because the CREATOR created you, and He made you GOOD. I pray that you are able to find peace in your day and that you find the rest you so desperately need.

How are you planning to find rest today?

~Jessica

Enjoy the Moment....

Enjoy the Moment….It all goes by so quickly…..You’re going to miss this……

File those under “things that just might make you come unhinged?” amIrite?

The truth is, that we really do know that it is passing by way too quickly than we wish it was. Who wouldn't give for one more newborn snuggle? What about those fleeting new moments of getting to know a brand-new person? Before you know it, those little tiny feet that barely could fit into a pair of newborn socks have outgrown YOUR shoes and that little person is taller than you….. we KNOW this. We know this truth in our very core, whether we want to actually acknowledge it or not.

Somedays can’t seem to go by quickly enough and other moments just linger and stay beyond their welcome, don’t they? Goodness, there are things about being a child that we even miss ourselves- you know, the whole not having to get up and go to work everyday, not having to plan, cook, and clean up three meals a day (and then there are those Hobbit snacks……..)

Add in a healthy dose of mom Guilt, and boy is this a recipe for disaster, isn’t it? And there just seems to be so much that we need to feel guilty about these days, and if we aren’t heaping on the guilt ourselves, just give it a minute, and we’ll find it somehwere- in a commercial, a well-meaning family member, an innocent bystander in a store…..maybe even your best friend? At some point, typically when you are already feeling at your worst, you’ll get this huge red flag sign about how you aren’t doing enough, you aren’t doing the right things, and you might feel like an utter, absolute failure……

I wish that I had a magic wand, or some incredible words of wisdom for you that make it all better. But, what I do have is a reminder that MAGIC can happen in those moments. That those moments can be the BEST moments in our lives- if we let them.

This is my 9th year of homeschooling my children, and you would think that I’d have it figured out by now…..but goodness, if it hasn’t been a whole new level of crazy adding a new Kindergartner to the mix! Somehow, it was far less stressful when he was just a preschooler and I could set him on the floor with some blocks and crayons, and I didn’t have to make sure he was learning something, or in truth, when I didn’t have that extra set of check boxes to mark off for him.

This particular little boy is super crazy smart, overly energetic and TROUBLE! He has so so so much energy, and is just blessed with an extra dose of curiosity, and somehow he hasn’t managed to master that important lesson that he isn’t invincible and that not ALL ideas should be followed through……

This little boy is adamantly against learning his ABCs. Latin? He can speak to you in Latin, has all of his older siblings Latin vocabulary memorized and does a better job remembering it than I do sometimes (and I took two years of Latin in high school!). He can answer questions on a philosophical level that even his older siblings (the ones that go to Public School) have yet to master- he can sort out things, reason them out, and formulate ideas, questions and thoughts all his own. He has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge for things- well, things OTHER than the ABCs…..(unless it is C for cat or T for Tasmanian devils, he has no use for the rest of the letters he says!) He has spent the last 2 years at my feet, soaking in and listening to all our school lessons and then blowing me away be telling my husband about them at the dinner table. He even corrected information that my daughter learned at school that was incorrect concerning American History. But back to those ABCs…..I guess he finds them unnecessary? Who knows…..

It has been just dreary hear- like pouring buckets and buckets of rain. Puddles, cold, wet…..and so we have been stuck inside. Meaning- I have one very wound up, needing to get his energy out boy, who is just done with having to learn those pesky letter things by his 6th day of Kindergarten.

In the past, I would have kept bringing him back to the table, kept beating my head against the wall…..most likely lost my cool, and wound up in hiding in the garage, calling my husband in tears. (oh wait, that was just last week, lol!). Instead, I decided to be in the moment. Right now this particular little boy is enthralled with learning about Tasmanian devils, wanting to practice his Latin, and then just to read book after book after book. And so I did. We read and we read and we read. We turned on some music, and danced those wiggles out. We read some more books and then we had lunch.

My check boxes aren’t checked, but you know what? I’m ok with that. Some days you just need grace. You just need to remember that these days ARE fleeting, that these moments pass by and you can’t have them again. Some days you just need to be in the moment, reading all the books, and letting go of the to do’s. And you know what? That’s ok. And there were no tears, no stress, no yelling matches, and it’s all good.

We still learned. We read about Vivaldi. We read funny animals books. We helped the Little Pigs count to 100. We had some really in depth discussions- with the older 2 kiddos- about Adam, Eve, Sin and the magnitude of Noah’s Obedience. I’m still reveling in the truths from these verses that my children helped me to see. Even a child shall lead them……(because as our verse this week reminds us, ALL Scripture is God-Breathed!) . Lessons for a lifetime, lessons that have an impact on eternity- lessons beyond a page in a book, or checking off that next item…..

Some seasons are about just learning to be. And at the end of the day? I’m sure that he will eventually learn those letters- just in his own time, and hopefully without tears. I’d rather him learn to LOVE learning, to want to learn, and to be hungry for knowledge than to make it a boring chore that he comes to resent. And you know what else? When I use the same concept with the older 2, when their eyes are getting glazed over a History lesson, or when they just aren’t mastering the spelling list, it makes that work out much better as well. Grace. We all need a healthy dose of GRACE in our lives. When you are just rushing to mark off all the items on your To Do List, how much does it fill you with joy? Are you able to stop and enjoy the moments, or does it just become busy work? Take the time to find, and enjoy the moments, just BE in the moments and let that change you.

It's Been Awhile.....

It’s been awhile, hasn’t it?

I won’t bore you with all the details (and trust me, they are plentiful!), I’ll just sum it all up really quick: We moved (and by we, I mean 2 adults, 5 kids and 3 cats crammed in a mini-van!), from Arizona to Ohio.

So, it’s taken just a little bit of time to adjust and get settled.

Because I didn’t have enough changes going on in my life, haha, I decided that it was also time for a pattern update and new logo (along with a new theme and pretty much everything else as well!).

In case you’ve missed it, here is my fabulous new log (designed by my incredibly talented friend Amanda Anson):

I managed to finally unpack one of those stubborn boxes that I tend to just pass by most days (and by pass by, I really mean stub my toe on as I run from the room to stop a child from making a huge mess….because Summer vacation……), and I’m kind of glad that I decided to take some time to unpack this particular box this morning because I found my sample for my Once in a Lullaby shawl. Which of course meant that I needed to take advantage of the overcast sky and get some new pictures of this beauty!

I’d forgotten how much I love this simple shawl (really, simple is the best sometimes, isn’t it?) I used one of Kim Dyes Yarn Gradient cakes to knit this one, in Rainbow colors of course! But you could use any Sock/Fingering weight yarn of your choice, I’d just make sure you have 490-500 yards of it.

This shawl showcases one of my favorite constructions, a semi-circular shawl worked from the top down. It has just a bit of texture stitches (think simple Garter Stitches here!), and that ruffle edging, just perfection!

This would be a great knitting project if you are ready to take the next step, or even if you are just ready to tackle knitting in general. You’ll need some basic knit stitches in your tool box and you’ll be all set to make this shawl your very own. If you want to get the pattern, I’ve got a treat for you! You can get it for free by signing up for my email list right here

If you have your pattern and are ready to take the next step, but you aren’t sure how to get started, leave me a comment and let me know! I’ll be happy to put together something to help you out, ok?

Don’t forget to keep looking for the rainbows, even on the darkest days. Isn’t it nice to know that there is a promise and a hope that is bigger than ourselves?

Happy Knitting!

~Jessica

BizzyMom:January: New Year, what are you going to do?

Happy 2019 Friends!

Yes, I know it’s a few days into it already (lol, so a little over 2 weeks, but who’s counting?) but I haven’t been quite ready to get things started yet, and have been relishing the time to just be with my family. And that is a-ok! If I’ve learned anything this past year, it has been to cherish the time that you have while you have it, and the rest can sort itself out. 

So, how are your resolutions coming along? Or not. I’m not so much into making resolutions as I am just trying to get things done, trying to make small changes, and to achieve overall life change for the better. Sounds simple, right?  Staring at the big blank calendar can be overwhelming while simultaneously being tempting as you rush to plan and fill in every available blank space. My first challenge to you is to NOT- see how much of your space/time you can leave free. What is the worst that would happen if you left one week-day day a week open? Then, at the very least, you would either have a day to catch up on the things you missed, or if you stay on track the rest of the days, you will have a true day of rest. What if you built that into every week, every month, all year long? What could you spend that free time doing instead? Maybe there is a game your children always beg you to play, but you just don’t have the time? Or there is something special you want to cook but again, don’t have the time? Whatever it might be, you will suddenly have the time. 

Do you have a big goal that you would like to see happen this year? Maybe you have something you can’t wait to launch. Or a product that you just can’t wait to create. What if this is the year you finally write your book? Well, you could plan this out, carefully, step-by-step, and then forget about it because you never have the time to take that first step. Or you could commit to yourself that you are going to work on your big goal for 15 minutes three times a week- put it on your calendar, scheduled it in your planner, turn off your phone, shut off the wifi, and just DO it for those 15 mintues 3 times a week. If you want to write a book, just write, for 15 minutes three times a week. Set a timer, sit down with JUST what you need- pad and paper, a computer that has everything blocked EXCEPT your writing program, and do it. Even if you just write I don’t know what to write for 15 minutes. Will you get your book done today? No. But those 15 minutes add up. And before you know it, you have the first sentence, first paragraph, first page, first chapter. You just have to get started.  If 15 minutes works well for you, then stick with that, if you find you want to continue and stretch yourself, add 15 minute increments to your plan, up to a full two hours (or break the two hours into one hour in the morning and one in the afternoon), and commit to it. If it starts to be too much, or you feel overwhelmed, start back with just 15 minutes. 

No matter what it is you want to achieve, or get done, breaking it down into smaller, manageable chunks, helps to ensure that you will get it done. This works for your kids too! Getting everyone back into our rhythm and school routine was TOO big for mine, especially after how much fun we had with Christmas school. But, easing into the rhythm, by starting with just two subjects, and then slowly adding more in, until we had a nice balance back, made it so much easier, and ended a lot of the school blues. (Also, being sure to start our morning with a nice variety of fun, non-school specific picture books helps a TON!)

Maybe your goal this year isn’t so much doing something as it is having something, or maybe even traveling somewhere? Well, again, you aren’t going to just make all the funds you need for your project or vacation today, but what if you saved just $1 a day? Or $10 a week? Or whatever amount makes the most financial sense to you? Bit by bit, it will add up, promise. 

So, what do you think? What are you going to commit to doing this year? What is something that you are going to give at least 15 minutes to at least three times a week? Maybe you have a habit that you want to develop in your kids (here, we are trying to get back to quiet after lunch reading time, so we are starting with 10 minutes after lunch, twice a week, next week, we will add three days, then the next week we will add 2 minuets to each session, with a goal of eventually having 30 minutes of reading time, three afternoons a week). When you break things down, and set a manageable time limit for yourself, it does feel so overwhelming and impossible. 

I can’t wait to hear about your exciting plans for the year and how I can support you in reaching them!

BizzyMom: December Musings

December Musings:

Ah, December! One of the busiest, sweetest, coziest and most joyful months of the year. It can also be overwhelming, overstimulating and riddled with complex emotions. One of the things that I’ve learned over the years (and trust me, it’s take me YEARS to learn this and I’m still practicing the mastery of it, lol!), is to just slow down and enjoy the season day by day. 

In fact, I set up my year intentionally so that I can spend my December slowing down and taking time to be present with my family. I try to extend that slowing down and savoring focus across the board- school, work, activities and life in general.  When I start to get overwhelmed or start to worry about all the “things” that we need to do, I take a breath and remind myself that it is a WHOLE season and not just one day. 

It feels like it has almost become taboo to tell people to “savor these days”, or to tell the young mother with small children (or monkeys), that “it goes by so quickly”, but truthfully, it does. I promise (and then you have bigger, different, no less harder problems to solve…..it will ALWAYS be something), I really, really promise, and if we aren’t careful, we are likely to miss the joy and wonder in this season of life, whatever point of the season we are currently living. Yes, it is hard. Yes, it is a struggle. Yes, the days feel so long. Yes it goes by so quickly. Yes, there is so much to do. But are you PRESENT? Did you see the twinkle in your child’s eye today? Did you notice the way that their face lit up when you turned the lights on the Christmas tree? Did you hear the sparkle in their voice when you told them that you were baking cookies this afternoon? Those are the moments, those are the times that make the struggle worth it, but if we are making ourselves too busy for the sake of the season, or we are giving ourselves permission to not carpe diem because some mom blogger one time thought that was a bad idea, we are likely to miss it. Don’t let yourselves get so tangled in the tinsel that you don’t see the star shining above it all.

It is not surprising that we feel the need to max every day to its fullest potential and cram every day so full that we end up counting down the days to Christmas with a sense of joy that it will all be over soon. As a whole, it seems like we spend our entire lives rushing things- it isn’t good enough to have children reading by first grade, now we spend money on programs to make them readers before they are 3. We compare and base our worth as parents on when and how we potty trained our children (sometimes we even attempt to “potty learn” babies!), we rush our children into learning, we raise our expectations of them so high, and then we wonder when they got all grown up and why they aren’t excited about Santa coming to visit. I’d like to invite you to spend this Season with me, savoring the moments and acquiring memories.

One of the areas that I found that caused stress during the Holiday season was trying to stick to our normal school schedule. Somehow those weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas always seem to get filled with a mix bag of tricks- seasonal illness, colds/flu, broken heaters, doctor’s appointments, dental visits, throw in a birthday and it would become impossible to catch up to where we “should” be in the school plans versus where we were and inevitably that would cause more stress. Enter Christmas school! It’s a more laid back, LIFE approach to school and it’s been a major life-saver for me the last 3 years I’ve embraced it.  Since we are studying Countries and Cultures this year, we are spending this time learning about Winter Holiday traditions around the world, reading fun books, doing a fun Usborne journal and cooking lots of treats (yay edible math!), I add a nice sprinkling of crafts spread through for my art loving child. It’s low-key, low-stress and the most important element is FUN.

I set my yearly plan up in January so that December is my month to plan, dream, and gather new ideas. I also make the time to take any classes that I might be interested in, because I’ve slowed down the other areas of my day, I have time to invest in myself and in learning. Realistically looking at things, if I haven’t made something happen in the other 11 months of the year, the last 3-4 weeks of the year are not going to make a drastic difference, so I would rather not spend the time stressing, but prefer to take the time to enjoy life. 

Finally, I invite you to embrace the Season for what it is, not every day has to be an over the top winter wonderland that rivals a day spent at the North Pole. Not every day is going to be happy or joyful. Holidays bring with them so many emotions and that means that somedays are going to be sad. When we have allowed ourselves to slow down and to really savor each day, we start to realize that life is full of good AND bad, that happy AND sad work together and that without each other, that life just isn’t as rich and as full as it can be. Two of my favorite Holiday movies are definitely not the picture perfect Winter Wonderland, but I think that is why I love them so much and turn to them every Christmas Season: Love, Actually and Inside Out. If you haven’t seen them, or if you just need a movie and PJ day, you should definitely make time to watch one or both of them. 

I love that sweet reminder that these hard days, those times of struggle, even those saddest days are creating memories and giving others a chance to be something special. I love the relationship that Joy and Sadness form in Inside Out and that reminder that yes, these days are long, yes this is hard, but boy, am I making a memory that will last (and let me assure you, that down the road when your teenager is sassing you and just making you want to cry, you’ll be grateful for those memories of the day when your 2 year old was acting, well, like they are 2 and you will need that memory to remind you why you love said teenager….not that I know from experience or anything…….)

I am so thankful for each of you that has been on this journey with me and I can’t wait to see where it takes us in 2019. I wish you and your family the best this Christmas season and may you find small moments to savor, remember, you can celebrate the entire season and do not have to stress about filling it all in one day (you also don’t have to stop celebrating and savoring just because December has ended!). 

Merry Christmas,

~Jessica

~Yarn Along: December.....

~Yarnalong:

Somehow December snuck up on me this year (I think I say that every year, but for some reason, it seemed to just show up out of nowhere!). I love the way that we have worked slowing down into our yearly plan, and it’s been perfect for all the “busy” and change we’ve been facing the last few weeks. I’m ready to pull out the Christmas books, though, and I’m looking forward to enjoying some time reading my Advent books, and the Christmas stories that I’ve gathered through the year (I have a Mitford Christmas book that I just can’t wait to savor!). I’m reminding myself of something that I heard Pam Barnhill say during one of her talks the other week- that Christmas is for the ENTIRE season, it isn’t just one day, and so savor it, and enjoy it. It has really helped me to have a more relaxed approach to the whole thing, and if we end up celebrating and savoring all the way to Epiphany and beyond, well, who wouldn’t want a little more Christmas in their life?

So, with that philosophy in mind, I gave in to my children’s request to continue with our Mary Poppins books instead of loading up on Christmas stories (we did save part of our morning to read through Miracle on 34th Street, the chapters are just short enough, and the illustrations are captivating and I personally can’t wait to share one of my favorites, The Best/Worst Christmas Pageant Ever, it always reminds me of my second grade teacher, Mrs. Butler, who read it to our class and gifted me a copy for Christmas). All three of mine enjoyed listening to Mary Poppins (the four year old was the biggest fan and would even request it during dinner, and on the weekends!) and so they were very sad when we finished the book. They were excited to learn that there were several more Mary Poppins books we could share, though, and so I grabbed a copy of Mary Poppins Returns for us to share. We are all enjoying it so far!

I hadn't originally planned on any more Christmas knitting after I finished my Sugar Plum Fairy inspired shawl, In the Land of Sweets was finished, but I just couldn’t stay away from buying all the gorgeous Christmas colors my favorite indie dyers kept creating! Once they arrived, I couldn’t keep from casting them on and knitting up some special things! This Watts Up Merry and Bright was no exception! As soon as I unwrapped it, I knew it would make the perfect little Snowflake Cardigan for my little Elsa fan. I’d forgotten how quickly children-sized sweaters worked up, but I think this yarn had an extra dose of magical powers, because everything just clicked, and all the math worked perfectly, and I’m already cruising along the first sleeve! I’ve got some more Christmas knitting ideas up my sleeve as well, so stay tuned for those if you are interested (and make sure you are on my email list because I’m working up a sweet treat just for you!)

Until next time,

Happy Knitting,

~Jessica

When Busy Isn't Enough

When Busy Isn’t Enough……

I am deviating slightly from my plan to share my planner love with you, but, I want to be as real as I can with you all, and share my journey with you as much as possible, in the hopes that it helps you too, so I hope you won’t mind that I am detouring just a little bit……..

My go to these days when I am stressed, is to be busy- and not just a little busy, or necessary busy, or even deadline busy. The busy I am talking about is the one where you create work the isn’t necessary, make stress for yourself by leaving things to the last minute, redoing things to the point of insanity, where you commit to more things than are really physically possible, those times when you have to excuse super-human strength just to get through the day because every single minute is planned and jammed with details. The unhealthy busy, the busy where your priorities have left the behind and your core values have become a pot of mush. Anybody else with me here?

Well, that had been my MO since about June. I had an unexpected loss back in June, exactly two weeks before TNNA. I was already super nervous about TNNA, because I was teaching two different classes, working in a booth and it was the longest that I had ever been away from my family. At the time, it was so much easier to throw myself into TNNA prep to keep my mind busy and my heart from dwelling on the loss, so that’s what I did. I wrote and re-wrote my class handouts, wrote and re-wrote my teaching notes, I also rushed three designs to be ready so that I would have new samples, tech edited pieces and work to share once I got home. Suffice it to say, I arrived in Cleveland tired, worn out and in need of a break! But I kept on being busy because taking a break would mean to have to feel the feelings, so I kept on busy-ing.

Eventually I had stuffed the feelings so far down that I didn’t have to stay quite so busy, but I was definitely taking on and doing more than I knew was good for me. I managed to maintain a status quo busy for long enough that it just became normal and before I knew it, I didn’t have a day off at all. It was all working nicely until the other week…….

In one weekend, the house that I had fallen in love with (what seems like the only house in this area that will house all of us, comfortably!) went on the market to unavailable with the snap of one’s fingers, the yarn store that was my “yarn home” (and goodness, it was even called Jessica Knits!) Closed,  and watching those real, tangible losses happen woke something in me. I suddenly realized how cold and distant things had become because of my “busy”, and that the relationships I thought I’d had, were really only grounded in my busy and now that I just didn’t have the energy to put into them, well, at that point, I was all alone. With my feelings. Facing the loss. Facing the empty, and I just couldn’t be busy anymore because I had no more to give. 

It took about a good week of reset, of going back to my “3 task a day” habit, it even took scheduling downtime and free time and playtime for myself, but writing it down, planning it out, even planning to NOT BE BUSY slowly started to work. I could get back into my work routine that works for my life in this season and I wasn’t filling it with busy. I even started to use those same. Principles in our homeschool day- I spent about two days of listening to what my children were interested in learning, reading way more picture books than they ever would have sat for when I was calling the shots and forcing it, and we made tweaks to how we did some parts of our day (I even have them all happily learning Geography now and begging to do their daily map skills! ). I’m reworking and tweaking some things, and am hoping that in the new year, I have us all, my work and their school, on a loop/batch style schedule that will work for all of us (and I’ll be sharing that process with you all as I start to implement it!).

I know that as we enter these last two months of the year, BUSY seems to be the modus operandi, the only way to get it all done. I’m hoping to try for something a bit better, I’m focusing on acquiring memories in the every day. I know that the next several months of my life have me looking towards facing another loss, one of the biggest, scariest losses I can imagine. More than ever, this is the time when we all need to make sure we are taking time to breathe, cherish and enjoy what each day brings. I’ll be kicking off our book club sometime this month (watch for that on IG!), and I’m going to commit to spending 15 minutes a day doing something NOT BUSY, for right now, that means 15 minutes a day of knitting on my non-work sweater. What does that look like for you? I’ll be kicking off a Christmas KAL on November 23, if you need an accountability system to get your 15 minutes in every day, that would be a fantastic thing to do! 

Another thing that I highly suggest is to have a Just Because Day. It can sometimes be just what you need to get yourself uplifted and creating again. A Just Because Day is just that- you let go of the deadlines, the work, the fear, and do things, Just Because. You know, things like, visit that breakfast cafe you always mean to go to, spend a day at the park just because the weather is lovely, browse the local bookshop because you haven’t found a treasure for awhile, all those things that you just put off doing because you don’t have time? Spend a day immersed in them, Just Because. If you don’t have a whole day, how about the next time that little voice asks you to play Candy Land, instead of “just a minute” or ignoring it, hoping that it goes away, you say ok? Or just read a silly story together, and then another. Our littles are excellent readers at our stuffed feelings, and they sometimes know better what we need than we do ourselves. (Also, if you take the 15 minutes to play a game, or read a book, and give them all your one-on-one attention, when you pick your work back up, it goes a lot easier, and they interrupt you a lot less, trust me! I have to remind myself of this often, but it is always light a lightbulb moment when I remember and give it a go!)

If you are feeling overwhelmed, anxious and like you are drowning in your work, I encourage you take a step back and identify what is going on? Have you just over committed yourself by accident or are you trying to escape something by being unnecessarily busy? Is there something else going on that is making you feel like that? Don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself, and if there is something going on, or you have more days that you “can’t shake the blues” than un-blue days, I urge you to make time to see your doctor, I’m not a doctor (and I don’t play one on TV!), and your health is the most important thing of all, ok? No matter what, make sure you are taking time to breathe and find some joy in your everyday. In the New Year, I’ll be sharing my tips and tricks for how I plan and schedule my work so that when I need a Just Because Day (or the flu takes my entire family down for a week……or some other huge life shift happens unexpectedly!), it doesn’t make me quiet an anxious, and I still manage to meet my deadlines (spoiler alert: Planners play a huge role!) 

Until next time,

~Jessica 

Perfect T(ea) Part 5- And we Finish!

We are so close to having a finished T!

Pour yourself some of your favorite T (this week I’m reaching for some Hot Tea, Pumpkin Chai Spice, perfect for fall!) and get cozy for a bit so that we can go over what needs to happen next.

So, you have finished your back and your front, and they are the same length (this is important to make the next step work, so if they aren’t quite the same take a moment to work them so they are!). Now, look at the front and notice how many stitches you have on the right front side, those are your should stitches. Look at the right back, and move the same number of stitches that you have on the front to your working needle. 

Now, before you move the front stitches, you need to decide how you want to seam your shoulder- do you want to Kitchener stitch them together, or do you prefer the 3-needle bind off? If you like Kitchner, than go ahead and move the front stitches to the open needle. If you prefer the 3-Needle Bind off, go ahead and grab an extra spare needle! 

Now, bind off the front and back stitches together in your preferred method.

Yay! (Leave the neck stitches from the back, and the front, if you have them, on their waste yarn! We’ll get to those in a minute.

Now, do the same thing with the shoulder stitches on the left side. 

If you are having a hard time with the Kitchener or the 3 Needle Bind off, make sure to post in the thread on Ravelry so we can help you out with that. If I need to, I’ll make a tutorial video for you to walk you through it, ok?

Shoulders seamed, check!

Up next is the sleeves! 

If you are going to a simple tank, like mine, I simply worked an applied I-cord edging around the armhole. (If you prefer to do a crochet edging, you could do that as well!) 

For the faded T, I worked a small sleeve, so I picked up 1 st for every st around the armhole, then place a marker, I worked in the round for about 6 rounds, then I worked in k2,p2 rib for 4 rounds and bound off. 

For the kid’s T with ruffled sleeves, I picked up 1 st to 1 st around the armhole, knit for about 1 inch, then I worked a kf&b (knit into the front and back) of every stitch  increase across the round, then knit for about another 2 inches before binding off. 

If you are looking to do long sleeves, you’ll want to work out a series of decreases down the arm so that your sleeves don’t hang of off you (since we are focusing on T’s, I’m not going to go over this too much here, but basically, work even for about 1 inch, in the round, and then decrease 2 sts roughly every inch or so until the arm length is what you desire, work a cuff, bind off, and be happy!)

However you work your sleeves, make sure you do the same for the other side (although you could go for a totally new look and have asymmetrical sleeves and be a trendsetter, lol!).

Sleeves, check!

Last thing: The Neck Edging!

For the V-neck on the tank, I just worked the applied I-cord edging.

I created a V-neck illusion on the faded tee, I picked up 1 st along the edge, knit across the sts held on waste yarn, then picked up 1 st per st along the other front edge, then, this is the important part, I worked in K2, P2 rib, FLAT, for about 2 inches. Then bind off.

Sew the rib part over itself down in the front so it makes a tiny placket. 

Weave in all ends, and wear happy! (well, first you should wash and block, but sometimes you just get too excited to do that, or, who am I kidding, to even weave in all those pesky ends!

Perfect T(ea) Part 4- The Front!

This week we are working on the front of our T’s! This part is so much fun (and it means we are so close to being done!) Since this can get a bit tricky (and there is still a bit of knitting to do!) we are going to work on this step (or catch up to it, lol!) over the next two weeks. Then, in two weeks, we’ll go over joining the front and back, and working on our sleeves. You are so close to having a new top to wear, isn’t it exciting?

Step 7:

Now, did you decide on what you want the front to look like? Good!

If you are going for a V-neck, you are going to want to pay attention to where you want the v to start, because you’ll have to work the two sides of the fronts separately at that point. If you are wanting a scooped neck, you need to figure out where you want the scoop to start.

Continue working in your preferred style (stripes/fade/etc) until you get to this measurement.

Step 8:

Scoop neck: Decide where you want the scoop neck to start, and you will work back and forth until you hit that measurement. 

Now, you need to use your tape measure again and figure out how wide across you want the neck scoop to be (for reference, on the children’s tee, it is 3” across), so figure out how many sts that will be for your tee (3* number of sts per inch)- 

You are going to subtract that number from the total number of sts you have across the front, and then divide by 2. (if the number is not divisible by 2, you can go up or down on the number of sts that you will have across the front so that you have an even number. 

Now, knit across the number that you got when you divided by 2, then knit across the front sts (and then move those sts to waste yarn), then knit across the remaining front sts. 

You will now be working across the two sides separately. 

Purl to 3 sts from the end, p2tog, p1, turn and knit back.

Repeat the last two rows until you reach the same length as the back.

Reattach your yarn, ready to work across the other side:

Knit across that number of sts minus 3- ssk, k1, turn and purl only over those sts!

Knit to 3 sts from the end, ssk, k1, turn and purl.

Continue in this manner until the measurement of your front only, matches that of the back. 

V-Neck:

Decide where you want the V-neck to start, and you will work back and forth until you hit that measurement. 

Now, take the total number of sts you have on your needle for the front, and divide that number by 2: 

Knit across that number of sts minus 3- ssk, k1, turn and purl only over those sts!

Knit to 3 sts from the end, ssk, k1, turn and purl.

Continue in this manner until the measurement of your front only, matches that of the length that your desired yoke needs to be, move the remaining sts to waste yarn.

Reattach your yarn ready to work across the other side of the front, working the RS first:

K1, k2tog, knit to the end of the row, turn and purl.

K1, k2tog, knit to the end of the row, turn and purl.

Continue in this manner until you have the same number of sts left on this side as you did on the first side.

Yay! Now pour yourself some tea, and enjoy, you are almost there!

The only thing you need to think about now is your sleeves. 

Are you going for a tank top? Ruffled sleeves? Elbow length sleeves? Maybe you want to get ahead of winter and make long sleeves.  No matter what you decide, it will be just right for you (and since the sleeves are worked in the round and are much smaller than the body, this part is going to breeze by super fast for you, promise!)

~Bizzy Mom: Planner Time!

Planner Time!

So, I promised that I’d share about my planner with you this month and I cannot wait! I LOVE planning and having a place to do it just makes it even better. It’s one of the major things that keeps me organized, keeps me on track, and keeps everything running smoothly, so this is one of the most important things I feel that I can share with you. Before I dive into it, I wanted to update you about one of the topics I shared last month. I have decided to go ahead and have a book club for the Hands Free Momma book! I’m thinking about kicking it off on November 1, and it will be super super informal. We’ll be taking our time, and having a chance to chat about the book. So, if you are interested, would you please let me know and then I’ll know what type of forum we need to host the book club portion. I can’t wait!

Now, on to planners! I get asked alot, if I do my planning on the computer and what app I recommend. Well, I can’t recommend an app because I don’t use one, lol. I’m an old school, planner gal (picking out my planner was my FAVORITE back to school activity! ). I’ve gone through several planner brands over the past couple of years- starting with a super simple calendar style planner from Target, to a more sophisticated calendar the did not work (and thus I can’t even remember the brand, lol!), I used an Ashley Shelley Planner for a few years, which I loved for it’s monthly layout, but I did not need all the more “Business” related features, particularly the time scheduled parts. I ordered my first Erin Condren Life Planner last year, and I don’t think I’ll be switching anytime soon! In fact, I even ordered the EC Monthly Planner for my job, and the Teacher Planner to keep track of our homeschooling things. I find that the layout of these planners works the best for my more creative focused business!

I’ve developed a planning system that works for me, so it might not necessarily work for you, but that’s ok. Try it, tweak it, and make it into something that DOES work for you. The key is to get something down, to make sure you know when you HAVE to have something done, and an overview of how you are going to get there! 

At the start of the year, or on Planner Day as I call it, lol, I pull out my planner, and put in all key dates on the Monthly Calendar Spreads- those things like, Birthdays (I do not work on my birthday!), Anniversary, my kid’s breaks from school, and any events that I know that I’ll be attending over the year. This gives me a nice place to start, knowing the dates that I am not available, and it makes sure that I give priority to the things that matter most to me (my kid’s birthday’s being one of those top things! I make it a point to not travel over their birthday’s!).

Then, I’ll pick a day when I have some time on my hands. I’ll either make sure it’s an afternoon I won’t be disturbed at home, or a time when I can get out to go to a coffee shop. I’ll get comfy, and dream about the things that I’d like to see happen over my year. Then, I’ll flip to my Yearly Planning Spread, and I’ll start to plug those items in (for example, my Christmas KAL will always fill the November box!), this gives me a place to plan for, and dream, and a forward motion for my business. If I have KAL’s planned, or collaborations, it gives me a space to make sure they are spread out, and an overview of what my year will look like. This isn’t set in stone, and I can be a little flexible, but it gives me a place to start. 

Then, I do my weekly planning. For my business, I take time every Monday to plan out my week. This way, I can make my week work as efficiently as possible. I can spend an afternoon typing patterns, I can spend a day working on emails, I can spend a day laying out patterns, that way I’m not jumping around from thing to thing, like a squirrel leaving things undone. It gets items typed up neatly. I know when my deadlines are, when proposals are due, and when I shouldn’t even send things out because my week is just booked. I make a little circle beside each item that I need “to do”, so that I can check off each item as it gets done. I schedule no more than 3 big items per day, and I try to have at least 2 days that are lighter, and have tasks that don’t have me sitting at the computer. I also keep my Friday’s open. That way, if I get behind, I have an extra weekday that I can use to get the work finished, and if I’m not behind, than I can use that day to get ahead of next week’s work, or I can get caught up on my knitting. I also use Friday to do my School Planning for the week, so I know what errands I need to run on Saturday and I can my a supply list and not get caught off guard when we need to do a celery experiment for science the following Tuesday (ooops! I think I still have forgotten to do that one, though).

At the end of the week, I’m able to see what is getting done, what is being missed, and I can take stock of how my week went- how it felt physically, emotionally, and productivity level. Evaluation things week by week means that I am tweaking things as they happen and making for the most productive week I can have. It also means that when my older kids are on Fall Break, I make sure that I am spending more time sitting and knitting, because that’s what works best in that space, lol.

Hopefully that helps with the overview of getting yourself organized and planned! What types of nitty gritty planning are you looking for some insight into? Have you been trying to pack too much into your day to the point that you just don’t get anything done? Have you been saying yes, when your initial gut reaction means you should be saying No? Maybe you are looking into buying your first planner ever, what type of organizational system do you need to fit your needs?

Perfect T(ea) Part 3!

How is everybody coming along? That is ALOT of knitting on the body, isn’t it? But, I hope you are making some nice shapes, and getting things just the way you want them! I love my boxy, faded T, but there is something just super magical about the way the shaping is worked along the tank. It really makes a difference and when I want to dress up, or look cute, that’s what I grab! 

I’ve also picked up some new teas to try this week, so I’ll be sharing those when I do. It’s finally fall, and we’ve actually had a few cool days here, so I’ll be pulling out the hot tea bags as well. (Of course, I have a Harvest Spice one that will be in constant rotation now that it is October!)

All right, so I don’t want to keep you waiting any longer, this week we are going to be talking about working the back yoke- the area from your underarm to the top of the shoulder, across the BACK, and looking at any variations we might want to make along the neckline (so that we are ready to dive into that next week!

Step 5:

If you don’t currently have 2 markers in your knitting (so, if you haven’t done any shaping, and just worked a boxy tee!), you are going to need to work this next step (if you do have 2 markers, just make sure that you have the same number of sts between both markers!):

Now, you are going to take your body sts and divide them in half so, basically, if you currently have 242 stitches, you will divide 242 by 2 (so 121). 

Knit that number that you just got, place a marker that is different than your end of round marker, and then knit the rest of the way around.

So, now we should all be on the same page and we are going to work some increases to create the arms. You are going to work 2 increase rows over 2 rounds like this:

K1, k1f&b, knit to 2 sts before m, k1f&b, k1, sm, k1, k1, k1f&b, knit to 2 sts before the end of the round m, k1f&b, k1. You’ve increased 4 sts.

Knit 1 round.

Repeat the increase round, you have now increased 4 sts, for a total of 8 sts increased.

Knit 1 round.

Now is when you need to decide what shape you want your neck to be. Do you want a more scooped neck (like the child’s version), a higher ballet type neck (like the striped version) or a v-neck (like the fade), because each one will mean you need to work Step 7 (which will arrive next week) differently!

Step 6:

Now, because you might still be deciding about the front of your piece and the neckline, we are going to separate the front from the back and work the back by itself.

Knit across the front sts to the side marker, place the sts you just worked onto waste yarn. Knit across the back sts, turn and you will begin to work the sts flat. 

Check the measurement that you took of the length from the underarm to the top of the back of the shirt (or have someone help you take your measurement to get this number). You are going to knit in your preferred style (faded/stripes, etc), until you reach this measurement. 

That gives you a bit of time to decide on that front!

Once you get to that measurement, put the back sts onto waste yarn, cut the yarn, leaving a nice long tail (maybe about 18” or so?) and reattach the yarn to the side, ready to work the front.

Pour yourself your beverage of choice and start making those decisions about the neckline shaping you are going to want to use for next week! We’re almost there knitting friends! 

Perfect T(ea) Part 2!

So, did you manage to get your T cast on or do you need some help getting it started? If you are having trouble figuring out the numbers, make sure to post over in the KAL thread so we can get you all sorted out! Before we get too far today, I wanted to share a super easy worksheet I made for you all! Hopefully this will help you keep your numbers in one place, and will help you as you plan out your T. You can download it right here.

We are going to work on Step 2 for two weeks, because it is a lot of knitting, as we make the body of our T (from the bottom edge to the start of the armholes!)

Before we can continue on, though,  you need to think about some of the modifications you might wish to make:

If you are going to fade, you need to plan for how long and how much. If you are striping, you need to decide how and when, if you are just making it all one nice color, then just keep knitting!

For the faded tee, I worked roughly 4” of each color section, then I worked the color I was knitting with and the next color I wanted to knit with in a stripe pattern where  I worked 4 rounds in each color. I figured out my stripe length based on my body length of 18”, and a yoke length of 8”, for a total of 26”, and 4 colors, it worked out roughly to being 4” of each color. You can easily work through this math for yours, take your total tee length (this is the yoke plus the length to the arms), and then divide that by how many colors you are working. Example: for a 3 color fade, you end up with 6 total colors, 1 block of each color by itself (3) and then 1 block for each color to fade into the next (3) for a total of 6 blocks of colors, if you are fading 4 colors, you’ll have 8 blocks of color, does that make sense?

And now we keep on knitting! Now you are going to proceed along in the style you prefer (whether that is to fade your colors, work in a single color, stripes, polka dots, whatever strikes YOUR fancy!), to the length you prefer your top to be from your underarm! So, this is that measurement you took on your shirt from your closet, or that you had someone measure on you, where you want your shirt to fall from your underarm (so don’t measure from the top of your shirt, or from the top of your shoulder, this is just that measurement from your armpit, basically!, you should have written that number down is Step 3, but if not, take a minute to make sure what your body length measurement should be and note it for yourself.

And you’ll just keep knitting until your piece reaches this measurement. 

*Shaping Modification- It wouldn’t be complete without one more option, now would it?

My Faded Version is a boxy, roomy, my favorite lounge at home or go catch a movie top. It’s comfy, it’s cozy, but it is not fitted. The Tank version is fitted, and has that A-line shaping to it, as does the children’s top (that one has even more fullness to it’s body). To achieve that shaping, first, remember back in Step One where I told you if you wanted the shape that your cast on measurement would need to be about 10-12 inches more than your target bust circumference? This is where we start to make it fit your bust (so if you didn’t make the cast on measurement more than the bust measurement, here’s where you will want to STOP, and restart!) For the tank version, my cast on edge is roughly 12 inches more than my intended bust measurement, and I wanted it slightly more tunic length, so I have about 20 inches of pure knitting bliss to work away on, which also means that I have 20 inches to decrease my top by 12 inches, with my gauge, I like the way that my decreases look when I decrease every 10 rounds.

So, to figure it out for yourself, first take your cast on number and divide it by two- then knit that number of sts, place a marker (a different color than your Start of Round Marker), and then knit to the end of the round.

Decrease Round: K1, ssk, knit to 3 sts before m, k2tog, k1, sm, k1, ssk, knit to 3 sts before m, k2tog, k1. You have now decreased 4 sts and have started the body shaping. 

I decreased 17 times to end up with my target bust stitches- (to find out how many sts you need to decrease, take your cast on number and subtract the number of sts you need for your bust measurement, divide that number by 4, and that is how many decrease rounds you need to work!) 

Whew! I know that is a lot, but this is the part that makes it YOUR T! (and don’t forget, if you get stuck, just post on the KAL thread and we’ll get you sorted out, ok? This is supposed to be fun, so don’t forget to grab your favorite T and share what you are drinking, I think I’m gong to take some inspiration from Twisted Owl’s Peachy T and make a Mango Version, with some Mango Snapple Tea and Tito’s, yummy!)

Perfect T(ea) KAL! Let's Get Started!

PERFECT KAL!

I am SOOOOOOO excited to join me in the quest to discover your perfect T! I started my journey a few months ago when I had a shirt that I just loved, but I didn’t always want ruffled sleeves, and I wanted to jazz it up just a bit (and wished it came in oh so many more colors), and then I wondered what would happen if I made some other modifications, gave it a V-neck, but I could never find exactly what I wanted, so, I did what any knitter does, I decided to create my own! I now have a striped cropped version, a faded V-neck comfy T version, a super summery Tank version (that I love!), and I’m already plotting my fall, I want to rock it in New York (hint hint bestie!), DRESS version that totally reminds me of my favorite musical. Even my daughter got in on the fun and had me recreate one of her favorite shirts and she picked out the colors and asked for ruffles.

The KAL is completely FREE and the recipe style pattern will be posted MKAL style every week, to every other week right here on my website. There is a KAL thread in the Twisted Owl Fiber Studio Group over on Ravelry that you can check out. Be sure to post your in progress pictures and feel free to chat about any questions you might have there!

The Basics:

Yarn: A Twisted Owl Fiber Studio Tee Bundle- The faded T version uses 3 skeins of 2 ply sock.

Needles- I used a size 4 needle to make my tee’s, your mileage may vary! So you are going to want to take some time to swatch.

Grab a tee you love, or that you wish you loved, if only it x. Make sure you make note of whatever x is (has 2” more inches in length, has a v-neck, has ruffled sleeves, made me the perfect drink….) your whatever is whatever you want the perfect t(ea) to be, so it will vary from someone else’s, but we are going to help you mix it all the same.

Ok, let’s get started! This week we are going to work on our gauge swatches and take our measurements, because this is the MOST important step.

Step 1: MAKE THAT GAUGE SWATCH! Seriously. This is one time that you can’t eyeball it, or pretend that your gauge matches my gauge. It won’t work. This is your custom tee, therefore, everything is built to you. I suggest that you knit your swatch in the round, and make it nice and big. If you are going to make stripes, or fade your tee, you don’t need to worry about that in your swatch, unless you want to see how the colors look. At this point, we just need to find out how many stitches you have per inch.  So, using the needles you are planning to use for your Tee, cast on about 36 sts, join to work in the round, and knit until your piece measures about 5” from the co edge. (You’ll have to magic loop so that you can work the sts in the round, another option is that you can knit across the RS, slide the sts across the needle, and then knit again. This method uses a bit more yarn, and when you are done, you will have to cut the string across the back). Once you have knit for 5”, bind off all sts. Wash and block your swatch!

Step 2: While your swatch is drying (because you have to wash and block it, right? Ok, I’ll wait while you go do that step….) so NOW while your swatch is drying, I want you to dig out that almost perfect tee in your closet. You know, your favorite one, but you wish it had a different color, or something such. And while you are up, grab your tape measure.

Step 3: So we are going to take some measurements. These are for the Basic, Boxy Tee (we’ll address v-necks, scooped necks, changes when we get to that point, promise!)

You need to measure how long the tee is from the bottom up to where the arm starts, write that number down and label it LENGTH.

Now, before we commit to that number, do you LIKE where this shirt ends? Do you want a few extra inches, or is it too long? Make that adjustment to your number! (For example, I’m making a tunic style this time, so I want about 6” longer than my favorite tee, because, tunic! So I’m going to add 6” to my number above, if you like the length and your tee is perfect except for the fact that it isn’t knitted, than you don’t need to change a thing!)

Now, we need to know how wide the tee is- the easiest way to find this number is to measure from side to side across the front, good, got that number?  Now double it. Write down HIPS/Circumference. That’s the circumference for your favorite tee.(Keep in mind this recipe is for a boxy style tee, if your tee is more shaped, than we’ll need to add in shaping, and that’s ok, we’ll walk through that when it’s time, Promise! You are making YOUR own recipe!)

*For the Tank version, to create the A-line shaping, I used the bust measurement that I was aiming for. based on my favorite tank top (36”) and then I added 10-12 inches for my cast on, I planned the decreases along the skirt part to give it that shape. I’ll walk you through the shaping, but, if you are wanting your finished top to look more like the tank version, you’ll need to change the circumference of the cast on edge. Feel free to head over to the chat if you have any questions about it!

Now let’s find out the Yoke (that’s the measurement from the top of the shirt to the bottom of the armpit, ending just where you stopped measuring for the length! Write down YOKE and put that measurement there.

Now, let’s get ready to get started.

Take the number that is your body circumference and multiply it by the number of sts you have per inch from your Gauge swatched.

(Example, I want a body circumference of 44” and I have 6 sts to the inch, well, 44x6 is  264.

So I want to cast on 264 sts- which also works if I want to do a 1x1 Rib, or a 2x2 rib, because it is divisible by 2 and 4. I’m going to start with a 1x1 Rib, so any even number will work. If you want a 2x2 Rib and the number of sts you have isn’t divisible by 4, just round up a few numbers until you get to one that is divisible by 4 and that is the number you will cast on. 

With your circular needle in the size needle that YOU used from your Gauge swatch (as long as you are happy with the fabric that it created!), cast on the number of sts from your circumference, pm and join to work in the round. Work the Rib that you prefer (I’m using 1x1 but you can use what you would like!) and work for as long as you would like your rib to be. You want at least an inch of ribbing to keep things from rolling, but you might want anywhere as long as 2-4”, and that’s a-ok. This is where we are going to pause for this week because that’s a lot of information to work with and we need to do some planning before we continue.

Now, is the time to start thinking about modifications here, if you are going to fade, you need to plan for how long and when, if you are striping, you need to decide how and when, if you are just making it all one nice color then you can plan for that. You also need to think about if you want any shaping, for the tank style, I decreased 10 inches from the CO edge to the bust to create that gentle, A-line shape. I also decreased in the children’s version in the same manner. For the faded tee, I left it a boxy look and the circumference stays the same through the entire top.

Make sure you head over to the KAL thread to share your progress and to ask any questions you might have! Check back next week for Step 2! I can’t wait to see the start off all your tee’s.

BizzyMom: Time, Playtime and Just.a.Minute.

I wasn’t sure what to share this month (I already have next month and the next month picked out, because, hello PLANNER season! I LOVE planners and cannot wait to share my love with you), but I wasn’t quite sure what this month had in store (other than Fall things and Pumpkin Coffee, and just a general sense of wanting to enjoy life). Then I started to notice something-

I didn’t post on the first Monday of the month, because it was Labor Day. My rule this year, that I’ve done a pretty good job sticking to, is that I don’t work on days when my husband is off of work. Period. (I try to stick to that on the weekend as well, but every now and then I have to break that rule). It’s also worked out nicely, because those days usually end up being days that my older children are home from school as well and so we are actually able to do family things as, well, a family. It took me awhile to be ok with not having to work all the time and not feeling guilty about it, but it has been a wonderful change and I don’t feel like all I do is work anymore. This was one of those planned and given Holidays, there is no mail, no bank runs, and no school. It’s in the calendar and we all know it is coming, and occasionally plan to go out of town, or in this instance, make the most of sales and finally arrange to have enough seating for our entire family in the living room……

A couple of days later, I was getting ready to sit down to do some work. Since Monday was a Holiday, I had a bit more on my to do list than normal, the kids were slogging through the school, and I really just wanted to get my tasks accomplished. But then, a sweet little voice from a little boy with a fever asked me to read him a story, and then another and another. So I did, he fell asleep, and I was able to get my to do list (and then the next day’s list!) done. If I had played the just a minute game with him, that probably would not have been the case.

Time is precious, and we never seem to have enough of it. Whether it is the time that our littles are little, or the knitting time we have to work on projects we want to work on, we always have something negative to say about time. Yet, have you noticed that some tasks take you way longer than others, or that some days it is taking you three hours to complete something instead of the one hour you planned for, but you are all caught up on IG posts from the last week, your Facebook is now all updated, and you’ve managed to chat on your favorite group site and now more about some internet lady we’ll call Brenda then you even know about your neighbor, yep….. Distractions. 

When you are working with limited time, the key is to make sure that you are giving 110% to the task at hand. My little boy was able to take comfort in his storytime, to the point that he was ready for a nap, because I gave my time to him, without distractions. I wasn’t checking my phone, or working on some other task, I was giving him my full, undivided attention. Same thing if I sit down to write. I know that somedays that means I only have 20 minutes to work on that particular project that day, and so, I only have my writing tab open. I don’t even open my internet browser, or pretend to just check my email real quick (I even mute my phone so I have no distractions!) Amazingly, I can get a huge chunk of work done in just 20 minutes because I have given it my FULL attention. I use the same principle when I am doing school in the morning. That way my children know that they are important, that I am giving them my full attention and that I am invested in their learning. They reciprocate by listening, paying attention and engaging in the lesson (usually…..the milage on this can vary, and especially with littles, having some sort of activity can help them focus better). I can tell immediately if I’ve been distracted or looking at my phone while reading a lesson, as soon as I ask a question, no one is ready to talk to me and I end up having to re-read the whole thing……that doesn’t do a lot to help that time situation. 

I have found that just putting my phone on the counter, turning the volume down (or muting it if I need to) works for me. There are apps that will turn off certain features of your phone for certain time spans, if that is something that is helpful to you. You have to decide for yourself have strong your will power is, and how you can best keep yourself from being distracted (and if you are resistant to putting your phone down, or not having access to it for 2 hours, you might want to look into them!) If you really want to challenge yourself in this area, I suggest reading Hands Free Mama: A Guide to Putting Down the Phone, Burning the To-Do List, and Letting Go of Perfection to Grasp What Really Matters!, by Rachel Macy Stafford. (Learning how to focus on just one task at a time has been a tremendous help for me, and I am definitely going to write about it more later, so definitely let me know if that is something you are interested in! I’m actually thinking about how it might be fun to do a book club and read through this book together and discuss it, so let me know if you are interested, ok?)

There are times that I do have to tell my children that I can help them in just a moment, or that I will be happy to help them with something right after I have finished a task, such as, I can read to you right after I start the dishwasher. Usually that request goes without a hitch. They are happy to wait just a minute, and they trust that I will get with them just as soon as I can. I’ve found that only works if I actually sit down to play the game, or read the book, or follow through with whatever I’ve promised in “just a minute”. If I try to add one more thing to my list and make the time longer, then it’s an entirely different story. Somehow it seems that with the rise of social media, we have forgotten that we can take “just a minute” or even a couple of minutes before we respond to something. Once you realize that no one is expecting you to sit in front of your computer or your phone 24/7, it’s a wonderful freedom to know that you can do all your follow up during your follow up scheduled time, and it will all be ok (I mean, seriously, have you ever had to call a physician after hours, on a holiday? I think it is like 2-4 hours they give to get back with you, and generally they don’t, you have to call at least twice!, and if it is an emergency, they direct you to the ER!), just because someone commented on your post, or sent you an email, you don’t have to reply to it right then. You can get to it in just a minute, without the fear of a toddler sized tantrum!  (And helpful hint here, if the item that you are replying to was negative at all in nature, I have found it extremely beneficial to follow the 24 hour rule- don’t even think about typing a reply until 24 hours after you’ve read the initial email, it goes so much better that way).

We can be our biggest enemies when it comes to our productivity and time management. Keep a record, just for a day, of how much time you are spending on your phone (and yes, those I am just checking my email for 5 quick seconds counts because I guarantee those 5 seconds turn into 15 minutes very quickly!). If you can ask others to give you just a minute, it is not going to hurt anyone if you have them wait just a minute (or several minutes!) for you to answer their email. And if you are interested in doing a book club with me, let me know, ok? I think it could be fun, and who knows, we might become more productive along the way!

Until next month (and I cannot wait to talk planners with you!)

~Jessica

~Yarnalong: Oh September!

~yarnalong: I can't believe that it's September already. Fall is either here, or just around the corner (depending on whether you measure fall by Pumpkin Spice lattes or falling leaves ;) and it's knitting season (although who am I kidding, it is always knitting season around here!). We finally seem to have settled into our new school rhythm for the year, and it feels good. 

I started reading Home to Holly Springs the other day and am enjoying it. I have read the Mitford books on and off over the years, seeming to find them when I'm just in need of something light and enjoyable to read. This is definitely one of those seasons! Life is so full and very busy, that I have just a small bit of reading time in my week. Reading about Father Tim's adventures makes that time filled with laughter and lightness. 

I'm working on the next piece of my Perfect T(ea) KAL, this one is going to be a tank (and possibly more "tunic" or dress length!) I'm loving this yarn that Twisted Owl Fiber Studio dyed up, it's so bright, colorful and full of my favorite colors in the perfect blend. I am looking forward to having this one finished, only because I can't wait to wear it (and because I've got knits and deadlines lined up for days......)

What are you reading and knitting this week?

Happy Knitting!

~Jessica

~Yarn Along: Taking Space and Making Time......

~yarnalong: I've decided to be adventurous and try new things this year, and have even been encouraging my children- we'll just try it, 10 minutes, tops, and if we don't like it, we'll try again tomorrow, and if it still isn't for us, at least we tried (I just spent the last 20 minute trying to calm down a second grader and explaining how she needed to at least try the reading assignment.....only to discover that it was ME who needed to adjust and make the reading lesson work for her where she is now......) Part of that trying new things is that we are actually reading the Biographies scheduled in our curriculum this year (I know, I know! But, I've also incorporated more picture books and living books than called for, and skip over some of the more "textbook-y" stuff, so, there's that!). My 9 year old is really enjoying learning about real people and their life stories. I can see him imagining and dreaming what it was like to climb that mountain in Guatemala like Cameron Townsend, and he's starting to ask questions and get into the story, especially since it's about a real life person. I'm not sure if that success is what made me pull this book of my own shelf, or it could possibly be because we've been starting our day off with some Rich Mullins, but, I really felt drawn towards this book for a few weeks now and I'm so glad that I finally listened to that little voice and started to read this one: Rich Mullins: His Life and Legacy, an Arrow Pointing to Heaven. I don't even remember getting this book but I'm so thankful that I had it around for "such a time as this." It isn't even that there is anything wrong, or bad going on in life right now, things are actually pretty steady, and good, but there's just been this general feeling of something is missing, something isn't fitting quite right, maybe even just a twinge of, this is not where I am supposed to be, and the quiet moments I've had to sit with this book have really spoken into that place. Reading this book has been like having coffee with a friend I haven't seen in years, but whom I can start chatting with right where we left off. The words meet me right where I am, no judgement, no condition, and they gently nudge me into a better understanding, and I find myself nodding and thinking, hmmmm, I've never thought of it that way, but. I am so glad that I do now! Rich Mullins music shapes so much of my growing up, from songs that I remember from Sunday school, to pieces that shaped the choreography and dances that still bring tears to my eyes, and fill me with such joy. There has just been something special about learning the backstory, seeing the history and taking time to remember and reflect how that has shaped my life and continues to shape my life. It's life a breath of peace and calm, an anchor in the raging storm, a steady reassurance and boldness as of yet unfounded. (And I'm only on chapter 4! I think this is one of those treasures that I am going to slowly savor. These words are so deep and so meaningful, and at the same time, they are encouragement, never a judgement. I'm thankful that I've saved this treasure and that I am in a place where I value it and have the opportunity to linger with it, slowly allowing the words to have the profound impact on my life that they do. 

I'm also slowly savoring and working through this piece. It hasn't grown much, mainly because I ripped out an entire section because I was just not happy with how the stitch pattern worked up. It was too loose and open to me. and it did not convey the emotion that I had connected to the piece. I ripped back. tried something else and I am very pleased with how it is looking now. I am enjoying that there is no deadline for this, that I'm making something for the sheer joy of making it, I did not make it, no it is making me, it's what makes me what I am. This piece is moving me in new directions and teaching me oh so very much, stitch by stitch, step by step. I'm so thankful for the space to soak in all these creative lessons and for the opportunity to be filled with joy. This yarn, The Yarn at Home Mom Shimmer Sock is just lovely. I love that sparkle! I can't wait to see how this looks all knit up, but I am truly enjoy the process and the chance to slowly watch it unravel. Because so much else of my work is truly hustle and bustle, I'm absolutely appreciating the change. It's a wonderful reminder that sometimes, we just need to savor, to find contentment, to give space for change, allow the weeping to endure for the night, because, JOY comes in the morning! 

What are you reading and knitting this week? Are you finding any unexpected lessons in your week? Have you uncovered any forgotten treasures or come across long lost friends? 

~Jessica