Yarn It: My life as I Live It and Knit It

Wake Up Call

It was a bit of a rough week so I haven't had time to post on my blog.....nor did I really have the mental capacity to focus on it. 

On Tuesday, my mom called me and told me my dad was going to the ER because his heart rate was around 200.  That is racing.  He is getting surgery on Monday for Carpal Tunnel and so at his pre-op on Tuesday he had an EKG because he is over 50.  It is standard.  The Dr. knew the high heart rate was abnormal for him and sent him to the ER in an ambulance. 

The whole thing threw me for a total loop.  I can't even tell you the wave of feelings and emotions that went through me as my mom told me what was going on.  I didn't handle it very well.  I drove an hour to the hospital to be with my mom and dad and my brother and his family went also.

They found that his heart was in Atrial fibrillation.  This means that the atria of the heart are quivering, rather than pumping, which causes blood to pool in the atria which can cause a blood clot and possible stroke.  They did in Echo cardiogram and found my dad didn't have a clot.....so then they shocked his heart back into normal sinus rhythm.  They weren't sure if it would work, but it did on the first shock. 

He is doing well and released from the hospital the next day.

I just never imagine anything bad happening to my parents yet.  They are so strong and healthy and I don't consider it!  It was a wake up call.  You never know what is going to happen or when.  We need to appreciate every day and minute that we have with the ones we love.  I am so grateful that my dad is ok.  He will need to be monitored to make sure he stays that way, but he is ok.  I love my dad so much, I can't even imagine my life without him.  I guess we all feel that way but this week I had to think about that reality. 

My mom is so strong and such a trooper.  I know it had to of been much harder on her than on me!  But she is so calm and in control in a crisis.  I admire that because I am not that way and never have been.  I freak out.  My dad is her life.....they have a wonderful marriage and are best friends and I can't imagine what she was going through.

Anyway.....that is pretty much it.  I do have some knitting going on that I would love to post about.  I need to show you pics of Snow White but I will be frogging it and I STILL have to get the darn zipper on Vivian!  I can't believe it.  At this rate I won't be able to wear it until next Fall!  I have a couple new projects that I started too.  I will start posting them this weekend.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Meret and Project Spectrum

I received the yarn and pattern for Meret from my Secret Pal.  The pattern was in my Rav queue and I love the color of the yarn she picked out.  It is GREEN which also coordinates with Project Spectrum for March/April!  Killing two birds with one stone works for me, however, I think there is still more green knitting coming up because I received a beautiful skein of "green" yarn from the Plucky Classics Club.  More coming on that at the end of the post.  Here is Meret:

Yarn:  Patons Classic Merino Wool

Needles:  US 7

Mods:  You have the option to knit a ribbed band or a rolled one.  I obviously decided to knit the ribbed band.  I also misread the repeat directions in the lace pattern and so my hat isn't "exactly correct".  I accommodated for the mistake by changing up the lace repeats throughout the rest of the pattern so that it was uniform and it looks just fine.  I also decided to knit the "slouchy" version.  I absolutely love this hat and will knit another one in another color soon.  I think Camille and I will be sharing this one because she loves knitted hats as well!

Project Spectrum

This years PS incorporates Cardinal Directions.  The directional element for March/April is North. We were to take a picture of the North direction and then described what North means to us.  Here is "North" from my house.

What does "North" mean to me?  Besides north being a direction.....it really means onward and upward to me.  When you go south.....the only way back up is north.  We are all constantly changing the direction in which our lives are going.  Over the last couple years I would say that my direction has been heading north.  I have been in a constant state of moving upward through rebuilding myself, my family, my financial situation, my education and by building a new relationship.  These are elements of moving my life north...upward for the better. 

As far as knitting goes for the rest of March and April for PS.....I am not exactly sure what I am going to knit next that has green in it but I am really tempted to use this skein of gorgeous yarn that I received from the Plucky Classics Club from The Plucky Knitter.  

Isn't this yarn gorgeous?   The yarn is 50/50 Silk Merino fingering weight.  The color is Container Garden and her Inspiration was Dreaming of Spring Planting.  It is actually much more muted than the picture shows (at least on my monitor) and has some browns in it as well.  Notice I took a picture of it on some moss and rocks....which goes along with the Element of Earth and the Materials of Stone for Project Spectrum.  I am thinking a pretty lace shawl would be perfect for this yarn.

I decided to join the Plucky Classics Club when Sarah re-opened the sign ups because it is almost impossible to get her yarn now!  I am not always available during the updates....or I forget....and she is always sold out when I finally make it over to her Etsy shop. 

Knitting Updates

I finished Snow White and I hate it on me.  I will take a picture of it but I will be frogging it and using the yarn for something else.  I started Bijou this weekend and I am hoping to get the zipper on Vivian tonight or tomorrow.  I really wanted to do it this weekend but it was too busy and it will take some concentration. 

That is about it!  Hope you all had a great weekend.

Bella's Mitts

First of all, I want to thank all you once again for your encouraging comments.  It seems that falling apart after the storm is pretty normal!  I really didn't even think about that happening.  I figured if I was going to fall apart it would be DURING the divorce process.  Regardless, I do have many wonderful things in my life.  There will always be bumps in the road no matter how blessed we are.

Ok, so I finally get to show you and FO!  Yeah!  I made Bella's Mitts for Camille and she LOVES them.  I think I want a pair for myself!  When I found the pattern and showed Camille, she just about flipped.  She is a total Twilight fan so these mittens were right up her alley.  Now all her friends want a pair....and they will even pay me $10!!!!  That cracked me up.  I am obviously not going to take $10 from her friends but I think I will work on knitting a few more pairs this weekend.  They knit up quickly. 

My little pre-teen sitting pretty and just way too cute for my comfort.

 

And a close up.  Aren't they cute?

Details:

Pattern:  Bella's Mitts

Yarn:  Cascade Ecological Wool

Needles:  US 8

I followed the pattern exactly as written and they fit her perfectly.  I didn't block them.  If I made them for myself, they would be a tad small in the hand length so I would have to block them and stretch them a bit.  These are perfect quick fix weekend knit and it made my little girl VERY happy!

I am hoping to show you Meret soon.  We took pictures but I wasn't very happy with them so we will do another photo shoot today.  Snow White isn't done but is sooo close - only a few more rows left.  Can't wait to see how it fits!

In random news, we are actually moving again.  If you can believe that.  I think I am in a bit of denial because I haven't started packing and we are supposed to move April 1st.  We are on propane where we live and had I know that before I moved here I probably wouldn't have done it.  I still didn't know how expensive it is!  We spend around $550 a month on propane and on top of that, one of our energy bills was $672.  It is insane.  We were using electric heaters to conserve propane but apparantly those consume a ton of electricity.  I have never spend more than $350 for gas and electric in the winter.  I really can't afford to spent that much on propane and energy.  We love where we live but it isn't worth the extra expense.  The money is better off used elsewhere. 

SO - we are moving to a really nice house that is really close to all my friends.  It will be a HUGE pain in the A$$ but it will be worth it in the end.  Do you see why I am stressed and out of whack??? No wonder!

As for this weekend, we will be taking it easy.  My friend Ginger and her family will be coming over to just "hang out" all day Saturday.  We are all going to hang out and talk while the kids play.  Then we will make dinner and watch a movie.  I am looking forward to it because I can get some knitting done!  Yeah!

I hope you all have a nice weekend.

Life's Issues

Lot's has been going on the last few months.  In all honesty, I haven't quite felt like myself and it has been challenging.  Between my family, Scott, and myself.....we are all trying to figure it out.  I don't know if it is hormonal or if it is depression but it has seriously set me back a bit.  I feel like I am finally starting to pull myself out of it.  I went to a hormone Dr. in Sacramento that deals in hormone replacement therapy with bioidentical hormones.  I am not sure how many of you have heard of these but they have been around for ages.  Oprah has had a couple huge shows on the issue of hormone replacement therapy using bioidenticals.  My mom is taking them and has been doing so well on them.  I am 35 and it is usually in your mid-30's when your ovaries start going haywire when producing hormones.  Many of my "symptoms" are probably related to a lack of progesterone, which is your "feel good" hormone.  I will start using a progesterone cream on my arms and legs two weeks out of every month.  I also started taking a small amount of estrogen to help with these horrible night sweats I have and a small amount of testosterone for energy.  I am seriously hoping it helps.  I have had major mood swings, bouts of emotional break downs, and these night sweats for about the past 8 months now and it has progressivly gotten worse.  I have good days too....but when the ups and downs come I feel like a crazy woman! 

I also started seeing my therapists again.  I feel like I have done a good job getting through the divorce, school, and starting over again.  There were many bumps in the road but for the most part I sailed through.  My therapist said that now that it is all over I am probably breaking down because I have a safe place to do it now.  And he is right.  I have Scott and I trust him with all my heart.  He has been a trooper and has been there for me through all my eradic mood swings, and I know it has been hard on him.  It never changes the way he feels about me though.  He is my rock and would do anything to help me.  My family has been a wonderful support system too. 

I am feeling better.  Instead of walking around thinking "What the hell is wrong with me???", I have started to address the issues by talking to my mom, Scott, and my therapist and by taking action.  Instead of feeling so out of control I am feeling more in control because I am doing something about it and also opening up about it.  I really have so much to be grateful for.  I have a wonderful family, a loving man in my life, and four wonderful children.  But when your body is out of whack you don't always see those things clearly. 

So there you have it - I am an open book again. And that explains my lack of blogging the last couple months.  I have been knitting though.  Don't feel sorry for me.  It will all work out - it is just another bump in the road of life.  It happens to all of us.

I have a few FO's to show:  Meret , Bella's Mitts , one of these Almeara Gloves , Snow White will be completed tonight, and Vivian has needed a zipper for a couple weeks now!  Hopefully I can get some photos of Meret and Bella's Mitts this afternoon.  If I can sneak in another post today....then I will!

SP13

I am WAY overdue in posting this pic.  I loaned out my camera and finally just got it back yesterday.  SP13 has come to an end and my Secret Pal has revealed herself!  Her name is Mioshee and she was an awesome secret pal.  Here is her last package to me:

This is a terrible picture.  She gave me a Valentine Bath set, pink jelly beans (yum!), a read heart candle, and very cool hat kit in gorgeous colors!  I received this package a couple weeks ago - you have no idea how hard it has been to not dig into it until I was able to get a picture! 

Now I can.  Yeah!

Thank you, Mioshee, for being a wonderful secret pal.  You really know how to spoil me and I appreciate all the thoughtfulness and kindness that went into your packages!