What is your New Year's Resolution?

I make about two to three every year and accomplish about one to two. I think loosing weight at my age is the hardest as I have been losing and re-gaining the same five pounds for the last six months.

My Resolutions for 2019:

1) Loose fifty pounds (really need to loose seventy-five to get back to where I actually felt my best).
2) Finish knitting at least one of the three afghans I have going.
3) Move
4) Get a new used vehicle.
5) Learn a new Knit stitch (I do this one every time I put it as a resolution-it's the one I can count on accomplishing).

So this year I made five resolutions. Two through four are the most important ones I really need to do this year though.

I hope in the comment section someone will put up their resolution for this year.

Have a great 2019.

Care for hand knitted & Crocheted items tag

This item is made from: __________________________________      It should be gently [  ] Hand [  ] Machine washed in                  [  ] Cold [  ] Warm water.  Do not wring. 

[  ] Can be tumble dried. [  ] Lay item flat, gently pulling into shape as it dries.        Do not hang up while wet. 

[  ] Do not Iron [  ] Iron with steam only 

This gift has been lovingly made 

  especially for: ____________________________________________ 

To help you keep it looking its best, there are 

a few handy washing and care tips on the reverse 

side of this card, so please keep it for future reference .

Adding this card to your homemade Knitting or Crocheted projects gives the person who receives, your specially made item for them, the information on how to care for the garment etc.

Ribbed Neckwarmer

Ribbed Neckwarmer by Pamel Welsh

4 ply yarn appox 200 yards

Size 8 needles

Cast on 38 sts.

Row 1: K 2, P 2 ribbing across

Row 2: P 2, K 2 across keeping with ribbing

Repeat these rows until 25 1/2" 

Buttonhole row: do 10 stitches in ribbing pattern, K2tog, Yarn over twice, K2tog, 10 sts in ribbing pattern, K2tog, Yarn over twice, K2tog, 10 sts in ribbing pattern.

Continue with rows 1 & 2 until you reach 28".

Bind off stitche in ribbing pattern. Weave in yarn tails.

Sew button to neckwarmer at angle or straight across from one another to match up with buttonholes.

In the picture is the angled way. If you do it across then you will be overlapping the neckwarmer around your neck not downward like I have it.

 

 

My Knitting Corner: Sleeveless Top

I love to knit. I find it "mostly relaxing." There are moments when I can get frustrated. It is then that my hubby goes and hides in the bedroom-LOL. It also keeps my mind sharp, most times from the "fibro fog" I experience from Fibromyalgia. Also, I find it keeps my fingers nimble, helping with the fibromyalgia (once again).

The sleeveless top below I knit for my Grand-daughter's 12th birthday. I combined a series of three yarns to come up with the effect. It was knit on a size 15 needles so it knit up quickly. I found the pattern in the book "Hip To Knit" by Judith L. Swartz. It is the "No Sleeves Funnel Top" on pages 48-51. You can knit a single-strand version with a chunky yarn or a multi-strand version with three differing strands of yarn-which is what I chose to do. On page 51 the author explains how to combine your own yarns, if you wish to use yarns you have readily available (or de-stash your stash) instead or buying the yarns she has listed in the book. I used yarns from my own stash. I used a cotton Tahini and Cha-Cha yarns.

Update On My Life With Fibromyalgia

My Fibromyalgia has been hard to control. I haven't been doing any writing for over a year now-as you can see. I am going to try harder though. I had surgery on my right rotator cuff 10 wks. ago. I had injured it on a trip we took to the East coast to see our Grandchildren in January. It was great to finally see them. I am now strengthening the rotator cuff. It is taking a long time to heal and progress as I had fell on it once 5 weeks post-op. That set me back about two weeks in my physical therapy. I am looking forward to knitting and doing more with my shoulder once again.

My son and his daughter will be moving out here soon. My daughter and her family are even considering it too. It would be nice to have my side of the family nearby me for a while-it's been ten yrs. since my children have lived nearby. I have missed alot of my grandchildren's growing up.

My husband is having more problems with his MS as I have been with my Fibromyalgia. My biggest problem with the fibro is that I can't take any pain pills they prescribe because I am always being allergic to them. My body just keeps rejecting them each time and keeps being allergic each time-even the pain patches. It's difficult to control the pain with just ice and motrin. I have recently begun a regimen of Magnesium which does help "some". Also, by experimenting with foods I have found that Cherries and Bannanas also help with pain. And the Bannanas eaten before bed also help me sleep a little better too.

Relaxing With Hobbies:

Life has a way of becoming hectic, so everyone needs to find ways to relax. Even in the past people found that hobbies and interests were great ways to relax. As Dale Carnegie said "Today is life-the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake. Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you. Live today with gusto."

I find my best ways to relax is by enjoying a variety of hobbies in what little leisure time I have available. These hobbies range from knitting, reading, writing, listening to a large variety of music, watching movies/dvds, playing with our two dogs, playing with the grandchildren, photography, surfing the internet, kicking back with my husband watching television. Sometimes when I am really stressed I find the best way to de-stress and relax is by baking or golfing. For golfing it would have to be good weather and I'd definitely have to have a partner, which usually is my husband or a friend. Therefore, golfing to me is only a part-time leisure hobby since it requires me to make reservations for a tee-time and find an available partner. My husband's been an avid golfer since the age of nine years old, therefore, it's not hard to get him to go. You just have to whisper the word golf and he is up to it in a second. It's working it around his odd-ball schedule, which is swings. I do more knitting, writing, listening to music and playing with our dogs/grandchildren than most of the others. With my wide variety of hobbies I would have to agree that I have enough to do one each day and never tire of ever repeating one a week. Therefore, when Phyllis McGinley says "A hobby a day keeps the doldrums away" I would definitely agree.

However, I also enjoy growing and tending tomato plants and an herb garden through the spring and summer seasons. I find this type of gardening very relaxing and healthy in many beneficial ways. As I get outside more for fresh air and sunshine. I also enjoy the sights of the butterflies, squirrels, and birds that visit our yard. That is relaxing in itself. When I used to have a much larger garden full of a large assortment of vegetables, seven years back, I found plenty of relaxation and fulfillment in it then. However, that was in a different place and when my mother was alive. My mother and I tended the garden together. It made her feel and act years younger, I believe because it relaxed her and also lifted her spirits. Each morning, with our coffee in hand, we would see who could get outside first to check on the garden's growth. We were like two overgrown children trying to outdo one another. Many years our tomato plants grew as tall as my mom, who happened to be 5 feet 4 inches. Those are moments I treasure as I check my tomatoes each summer and the smell of them rubs off on my hands. Those memories come flooding back, as the sun warms my cheeks, I bask relaxing in the memories of mom and our gardens of the past.

My husband and I also jump in our truck to go on day trips. These little jaunts have produced many interesting inspirations in which to write about. Along with numerous photographs and encounters with interesting people. Many of the people we've met have been quite informative with a variety of information/stories about the places/people of the areas. That are also great characters for my writing hobbies, along with the information I've gleaned from encountering them. On occasion we actually make friends of some of the people too. Which reminds me of one more quote. Wilfred Peterson said "A man practices the art of adventure when he breaks the chain of routine and renews his life through reading new books, traveling to new places, making new friends, taking up new hobbies and adopting new viewpoints."

In today's society hobbies are fast becoming more and more popular. It is a person's way to relax and re-energize after a long day at work. So if you haven't done so by now, get yourself a hobby and de-stress.