This time of year, it can be hard to be a GR8mom… on every front. At work, I just can’t stay focused… I’m dying to sneak out and get a gift or two crossed off my list. I’m still knitting a scarf, like I’m Madame Lafarge… Nothing is cozier than a fast, angry knitter. How many knitting days are left?
And then there’s always the work of work… end of year reviews, lists of things you should have had done by June 1st, and stupid admin tasks that can mount sky high. Nothing can wait till next year.
At home I strive just to be a good enough Mom. Non working moms seem to have cheery décor and their trees up already. My house has a plastic wreath on the door and the Halloween doormat is still out. Oh well. My kids are watching tv like it’s an inventory list! Have that, have that, need that. Mom, I want that! … groan… Plus it’s not like the old days when they longed for a doll or a board game, now they want I-phones and laptops, and video game consoles. My husband wants to trade out all our TVs for flat screens and I secretly wish I could have a luxury car with a big red bow on it. Don’t you?
I can’t afford even half of what we want. Plus my kids are looking less and less like they’re gonna make the cut on Santa’s Nice List. When did they get so greedy?
Between the glacial pace of traffic at the malls, the computer crashing right when you were going to hit “submit” on your shopping cart, and the parties where you have to be the designated driver, I feel like SCROOGE.
This can be a hard time of year for moms.
Welcome to the holiday …. HO HO HO … Let’s Dial down the Stress I’m going to try. Deep breaths.
Other years I’ve knitted like a fiend, intent of making 59 homemade gifts, but this year, to be honest, I’m enjoying knitting. The peace of just looping a yarn over a needle, and knitting and purling my way to a creation. When Christmas overwhelms, I find the best way to enjoy myself is to find the creativity in the season – make a gift, write a funny card, design a menu, or decorate your house. This is a time when I try to remember to do what feels good. It’s not a list, it’s a group of ideas that I can do or not do, based on my energy, mood and time. There’s endless time to knit. If it’s what you want to be doing, what else matters?
Here’s a Free knitting pattern for a hood with an attached scarf that my friend Kristen Carlberg sent me. She & Paige Sato own Modern Yarn in Montclair, NJ.
Cast on with a bulky yarn (approx 2 st/in) 9 stitches. Knit for approximately 62 rows or 24”, then using a backwards loop cast on, cast on an additional 18 stitches. Knit to end of ball or about 24 rows. This is half of the hood. Pick up new ball of yarn and knit another 24 rows. Mimicking the 1st half of the hood, bind off 18 stitches (leaving the 9 that form the scarf). Knit till second side matches first. Bind off. Match up the top edges of the hood, and seam, creating the hood pocket. This would be cute in stockinette or with pompoms on the ends. Cables on the long scarf bit would be great – customize to suit your own skill and creativity level!
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