Knitting

So yesterday morning, a friend facebook-ed me (is that a verb?) and said to meet her and her knitting group at Panera. So I grabbed the only pair of knitting needles I have and a ball of yarn and went. My friend Kristin from Fiber on a Whim was there and she showed me how to cast-on and knit. It is fun and relaxing and portable. I have been knitting a few minutes here and there ever since yesterday. I know I said I was going to do this a couple of years ago, but this time, I really think I mean it. Maybe next week I can learn to purl. My biggest issue right now is that the part I already knit keeps getting in my way. I need to figure out how to hold it better.

More fiber news--I get to go to Fiber Art Fusion this month. Yea!! Molly Elkind is going to be the speaker. I am excited.

Left-handed

My youngest is left-handed. At first, I just figured he was ambidextrous, but, no, he is left handed. He does everything with his left hand. He is unique in our family. And I don't know how to teach him how to hold a pencil. Now, anyone who has seen me write in real life knows that I do not hold my pencil correctly. As much as my parents and teachers tried to get me to hold a pencil correctly, I just reverted back to my way of holding a pencil. I can write very neatly. I can write pretty quickly. But I don't hold my pencil in the normal fashion. And neither does my oldest child, who is right-handed. Sam, the youngest, still holds his crayons in his fist. I was just trying to convince him to try to hold it right, but he is just not interested. I don't remember ever teaching the other kids. Does anyone know anything about teaching kids to hold pencils correctly? Or even at what age they are supposed to do this task?

Operation Pillowcase

Debra is hosting Operation Pillowcase. Today I made four pillowcases to send to the troops through her efforts. It was easy and fun and used up some fabric that I already had.

A Different Kind of Goodie Bag

One complaint I hear from many moms these days is about birthday party goody bags. Now, I don't care what you put in your kid's birthday party goody bag. Really, I don't. But I hear a lot of complaints about candy and stuff to throw away. So here is what Ed's friends took home with them yesterday:
A pillowcase (it was a sleepover)

and a book and a journal.

I made the pillowcases and covered the journals. It didn't take very long at all. Of course, the journals are not as fancy as the ones my friend Rebbecca makes. (Her's are gorgeous!) But the kids loved them. And yes, it did cost more than the candy would have. I will admit that. However, the items will last longer, too.

A New T-Shirt Quilt

I finished this quilt before Christmas for a friend's son. I really like how it turned out.