The rest will have to wait until next year, along with the half-finished sweater ornaments. For the folks at work I made gingerbread boys and girls, which didn't get finished until the wee hours of the morning and left the kitchen quite a mess.I received Amy Karol's "Bend-the-Rules Sewing" as a gift and am really enjoying it. I also received lots of sewing supplies and stocked up on knitting goodies at the after-Christmas doorbuster at The Woolie Ewe (50% off from 5-8am and man was it packed). My first project of the New Year is a large cabled handbag, and if I can make sense of the directions it may just end up pretty cute. I've had an unfounded fear of cables, but turns out they're actually pretty fun. My studio is pretty well stocked at this point so watch out.
Madeline received perhaps the best handmade gift of them all this year - a Raggedy Ann doll made by Grammy, which she affectionately refers to as "baby".
I suppose in the spirit of the New Year it's time for a few resolutions:1. Craft more. The past month has been a lot of fun with all the different projects, but it occurs to me that I'd like to be better at sewing and knitting and crocheting and etc. Much better. And so I need practice. I also resolve not to have a bunch of half finished projects all over the place, which is a definite possibility given my track record at home improvements. Which leads me to my next resolution.
2. Catch up on list of home improvement projects. This list includes but is not limited to finishing painting the stairs, painting the guest bedroom, painting the main stairway and back stairway, painting the front deck, shutters and garage door, replacing the lights in the kitchen with this and this, repainting the kitchen and master bedroom, retiling the kitchen backsplash, repaving the driveway and reglazing the bathtub. I think I'll get some help with those last two.
3. Dress better for work. Sometimes it feels like I work at a high school. Not like I'm a teacher at a high school, but like I am actually attending high school. I think dressing a little better would help me feel more like an adult at a respectable place of employment.
4. See a Kirtland's Warbler. This one's been on my resolution list for three years now, and this year it's going to happen.
5. Walk HSHV dogs at least 2 hours a week, every week. I've actually been pretty good about sticking to my 2 hour/week commitment since I started volunteering at HSHV last summer, but sometimes when work gets heavy I let it slide. Those dogs deserve better and I really think it makes a difference. Somebody did it for Otis, and for that I am very grateful.
6. Work less on weekends. Lately I've been working a lot of Saturdays or Sundays, usually both, after putting in a full 40+ hour week. It's a pain in the butt, and driving back and forth seems to eat up my weekends, which makes accomplishing the other resolutions on my list difficult. It also makes me resent my job, which is a drag because I do honestly believe in the value of my job and the work I do. With some careful planning and effort I think I can get away with less weekend time, without sacrificing efficiency or quality of my work.
I think this post has grown long enough. That's what I get for posting less than once a month. Hmmm, #7 - Blog more.
