Live simply. What does that mean to you? I'm sure if you asked 10 people that one question, you would get different answers. There is no right answer and no right or wrong way to do it either. You'll find everyone has their "how-to" out there on the web. This is what worked for them, but may not work fully for you. I've looked at tons of sites and pins on pinterest.com looking for methods of scaling back.
Over the next 6 months I'm going to try and simplify my lifestyle. After bringing baby home and not returning to work my stress level has decreased. I'm not pushing myself so hard to get it all done at once. With the little guy here most of my schedule revolves around him and his needs for the day. That being the case I would like to simplify not only what we own, but also how I do things. This allowing me more opportunity to keep the house under control or be social and enjoy the time I have with my family.
I'm going to start with stuff since I can't seem to focus clearly until the house is in order. I plan on starting once I've recovered from having my wisdom teeth pulled yesterday. Oh how I look forward to eating solid food.
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Friday, April 5, 2013
Knitting with friends
I started knitting around 2 years ago. The first person we met when we moved to Boise was the girlfriend of a guy who was in training with my husband. They stayed with us for a couple weeks while closing on a house and as a thank you, bought me my first knitting lesson. Over the last two years I've gotten closer with that girl. Our boys deployed and we knit together. They broke up and we continued to knit together. No matter what's going on we can sit together and talk about our projects and life. It is the gift that keeps giving. That friend is moving this weekend. I'm very sad to see her go, but very excited for this new opportunity in her life. And while I'm losing a knitting partner, in the coming days I'll be gaining a few more.
Recently, through knitting hats for new squadron babies I've had some other ladies share their desire to learn to knit. I look forward to sharing this thing that has given me such joy. I wanted to share my going ons of this week trying to prepare a little to teach these ladies. I felt when I started that there was so much I didn't understand. I need to see examples of what you're talking about to fully grasp the concept of what I'll be doing. Below I've shared a few of my swatches and if you're a new knitter I encourage you to visit Ravelry and check out all the patterns there are out there. It's not just our grandmother's hobby.
Stockinette Stitch
Made by knitting on the right side (RS) and purling on the wrong side (WS)
example: Row 1 knit; Row 2 purl
In the Round (circular needles): Knit all rows
Notice how this fabric curls on the ends.
Let's say you're knitting a scarf. If you have stockinette stitch at the edges it will curl some.
Let's say you're knitting a scarf. If you have stockinette stitch at the edges it will curl some.
Garter Stitch
Knit all rows
In the Round: Rows alternate from knit to purl.
This fabric will look the same from the WS as it does on the RS.
Ribbing
Here's an example of ribbing. This is made by alternating knit and purl stitches
on a single row and continuing that pattern on other rows.
on a single row and continuing that pattern on other rows.
The bottom of this swatch is made by knitting(K) 2, Purl(P) 3, K5, P3,K2
the next row (WS) would be reversed - P2, K3, P5, K3, P2
An example of how two simple stitches can make something that looks more complex
This last one is just a current project I'm working on, my first fingerless mitts.
This is a little more difficult (not by much) with the use of a yarn over (an increase)
and two decreases (SSK or slip slip knit and K2tog or knit two together)
This is a little more difficult (not by much) with the use of a yarn over (an increase)
and two decreases (SSK or slip slip knit and K2tog or knit two together)
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Housekeeping and Motherhood
In just the last few months my life has changed completely. I've gone from working outside of the home to having our first child and deciding, with my husband's schedule, I want to be home full-time to raise our little boy.
This blog is meant to be kind of a diary of my transition into motherhood and keeping house again. You see it's been over 4 years since I've had a regular schedule. I used to work a normal 9-5 job and after getting laid off I decided I wanted a change. I went back to school to be in the healthcare field so I could find work easier since we move every 3 years with the military. I worked night shift and then evenings and even some days with this first job. My sleep schedule has been anything but regular. It's not so surprising that with these changes, my normal routines for keeping house have gone by the wayside. Now that we have a little one, and my husband's schedule being hectic, I've decided to stay home. I've got to say so far I'm loving it! I'm far from being on a regular schedule, but I'm finding my way.
Another purpose of me doing this is to remind myself that even though I'm not perfect, I'm doing pretty dang well for myself. I tend to be a perfectionist and with that, for me, comes the feeling of not being good enough, because I'm not to that bar I've set for myself. That bar is at an unattainable height and I'm realizing with time that I need to give myself credit for what I AM doing. Maybe that's something you struggle with too. We look at Pinterest and magazines and see a world we'd love to have. The home decorating, and perfectly photographed food and the crafting, oh the crafting, we aspire to do. I think many times we focus so much on what we'd like to get done or how we'd like to live and don't give credit for what we're doing. We look forward to the improvements we want to make in our homes, in our families and ourselves and forget to realize how wonderful we are NOW.
Well, I hope that at some point this helps someone or at least provides a little entertainment. I'm planning on sharing both successes and failures as I grow in this new phase of life. I can't wait!
This blog is meant to be kind of a diary of my transition into motherhood and keeping house again. You see it's been over 4 years since I've had a regular schedule. I used to work a normal 9-5 job and after getting laid off I decided I wanted a change. I went back to school to be in the healthcare field so I could find work easier since we move every 3 years with the military. I worked night shift and then evenings and even some days with this first job. My sleep schedule has been anything but regular. It's not so surprising that with these changes, my normal routines for keeping house have gone by the wayside. Now that we have a little one, and my husband's schedule being hectic, I've decided to stay home. I've got to say so far I'm loving it! I'm far from being on a regular schedule, but I'm finding my way.
Another purpose of me doing this is to remind myself that even though I'm not perfect, I'm doing pretty dang well for myself. I tend to be a perfectionist and with that, for me, comes the feeling of not being good enough, because I'm not to that bar I've set for myself. That bar is at an unattainable height and I'm realizing with time that I need to give myself credit for what I AM doing. Maybe that's something you struggle with too. We look at Pinterest and magazines and see a world we'd love to have. The home decorating, and perfectly photographed food and the crafting, oh the crafting, we aspire to do. I think many times we focus so much on what we'd like to get done or how we'd like to live and don't give credit for what we're doing. We look forward to the improvements we want to make in our homes, in our families and ourselves and forget to realize how wonderful we are NOW.
Well, I hope that at some point this helps someone or at least provides a little entertainment. I'm planning on sharing both successes and failures as I grow in this new phase of life. I can't wait!
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