Easy Ribbed Scarf... Knitting WIP

Okay, so it's a bit wonky... well, it is my very first knitted thing ever. The fact that it is a little wonky doesn't really matter to me. I'm just excited that I've finally learned to knit.

And I must admit, it's not terribly difficult once you learn how to hold the needles. There is something soothing about the counting and the knitting and the purling. It relaxes me after a hectic day of troubleshooting computer errors.

Yes... sweet therapy. Predictable. Dependable. Knit. Knit. Knit. Then purl, purl. I don't have to think it through. And the beauty of it is that I don't have to have a tremendous amount of energy at the end of the day. I just pick up my needles and the rhythym reminds me to slow down... and breathe.

Tutorial here by Firefly.

I modified the tutorial a little by using a worsted weight wool blend yarn on size 8 needles.

And in case you need the basics on how to knit...

http://www.knittinghelp.com/

One more thing... introducing Cocoa! He's the latest addition to our family. We're in love!

Learning to Knit

***This entry has been updated. I linked you to the wrong knitting tutorial in the post below. I did use the Stitch Diva for a few tips, but I found that the videos were more helpful. The video tutorials are actually located here:

http://www.knittinghelp.com/

**********************************************************

I stumbled upon the best knitting tutorial ever... it is a series of videos done by the Stitch Diva that shows EXTREMELY INDEPTH instructions and tips. I've been an avid crocheter for years, but never learned to knit. Mainly because I was never taught to knit - my grandmother taught me to crochet, but she never knit.

Sure, I've thought about learning to knit many times. But the instuctions in knitting books seemed a bit complicated, and quite frankly, made little sense to me. I am so glad I found this website. I literally learned to knit in under 30 minutes. REALLY.

I'm not an expert... yet. But with a little practice, I should be knitting well within the week. It's a simple process. And since I already crochet, the movements come quite naturally. Go ahead... give it a try:

http://www.stitchdiva.com/custom.aspx?id=101

This is what I've started knitting:

http://scrumptiousliving.wordpress.com/2007/01/25/free-knitted-scarf-pattern/

It's a very simple and easy to knit scarf. I'm loving it and I can hardly believe how easily it is coming together. I will post a photo of the project soon.






In the meantime, the Craft Addict is doing a fabulous giveaway on her blog this week - hurry on over, the contest ends December 12, 2008. You can click here to view her blog and post a comment to enter the contest. You will not want to miss this - the items above are included in the giveaway. Major crafty score! And an added bonus: she's giving a little shoutout to our favorite charities. Mine is 100x Missions which exists to glorify God through the care of orphans and the sharing of the good news of Christ around the world.

Lost my crafty mojo?

Friends, I have a confession to make... I haven't been the least bit crafty in months. I know. A little depressing. I have several WIPs, but I'm having trouble getting back into the groove after my recent endeavors. Really and truly, I am just too tired.

I am enjoying my work, and my family is great about it. Everyone tries to pitch and do their part. My husband has even learned to do laundry (Woohoo!) I just find it hard to squeeze in time for crafting these days. And I do miss it. Really, I do.

I have managed to squeeze in time for cooking (we still like to eat, you know?) And I stumbled upon a couple of wonderful websites in my quest for good food:

Bob's Red Mill is an excellent site for grains, beans, flours, and all sorts of bread and muffin mixes. You can buy individual packages of their products, or buy in bulk for a substantial discount. Most things I've purchased have been in 25lb bags which I store in 5 or 2.5 gallon buckets with lids. It works out beautifully. Just be sure you have a place to store them - mine are stacked in a closet. If you decide to place an order, be sure you try the Apple Cinnamon & Grains Hot Cereal. It's more coarse in texture than oatmeal, and full of apple bits. My family loves it served with honey drizzled over the top. Yum!




The Fresh Loaf is a great site for amateur bread makers. I made this cornbread last night. It was soooo good! I used corn flour (no plain flour at all, just corn meal) from Bob's Red Mill and it was excellent. My husband said it was the best I had ever served, and that's saying something for him. He's really, really picky about his bread. FYI, corn flour is just corn meal that is ground very fine. Most corn meals are coarse in texture.





Psalm 34

1 I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.

2 My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

3 Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.

4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

5 Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.

8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

9 Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.

10 The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,

13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;

16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.

18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;

20 he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.

21 Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

22 The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

I'm back, and I'm ready.

I cannot believe that it has been nearly two months since my last post. As you can imagine, it's been a very busy summer for me. I returned to the corporate world after being at home with my baby girl for 18 months. Yeah, it was a rude awakening. But we've adjusted well.

You're probably wondering what is going on in my head lately. Truly, my focus is on obedience to God. He laid it on my heart to prepare for a famine, and that is what we've been doing for the last year. And I must say, with the current financial crisis, I'm feeling pretty good about the measures my family has taken to ensure that we don't go hungry - literally.

Friends, I believe with all my heart that we must, as a nation, return to our first love. To God Almighty. I have hope that we will experience revival in this nation. God is pouring out His Spirit upon His people in a powerful way. We will experience revival, or we will experience wrath. The choice is ours to make.

I encourage you to make your own preparations. Buy extra rice, beans, grains, and canned goods on your next shopping trip. What's it going to hurt? If I'm wrong, and you prepare - no big deal, you have extra food to eat. If I'm right, and you don't prepare - big problem, you watch your family go hungry.

And don't get me wrong, this is about so much more than stocking up on extra groceries. This is about obedience and submission. God loves us so much. Too much to leave us in sin. He will get our attention, and unfortunately, it usually takes suffering to wake us up. It's easy to get so wrapped up in ourselves and our routines that we end up shutting out our Creator.

Luke 11:10 (NIV)
10For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.


Check out this link to my friend's hubpage. She lays out God's plan of salvation very simply. We all need Jesus. There's no reason to live without Him. What are you waiting for?

http://hubpages.com/hub/speakingthetruthinlove

The Seven Non-Negotiables

A friend sent me this link which spells out seven non-negotiables of living for God. Each point is relevant and necessary for the Christian faith, and backed up by scripture.

http://www.familylife.com/site/apps/nl/content3.asp?c=dnJHKLNnFoG&b=3584679&ct=4639283

God's Peace Be Upon You

Matthew 24:4-14

4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ,[a]' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains.

9"Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.


Philippians 4:4-9

4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Put your trust in the Lord

2 Peter 2:1-9

1But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

4For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell,[a] putting them into gloomy dungeons[b] to be held for judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 9if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.

Kay Arthur's Message of Famine in America

I have had comments and questions concerning my post on Kay Arthur's message concerning famine in America.

To clarify, Kay warned that this country is in grave danger. She said it repeatedly and I got goosebumps every time she said it. She read many, many scriptures which warned that God will bring judgement upon a nation who sins against him. Judgement in the form of famine, plague, and sword. She didn't actually say that God is sending a famine upon this nation. What she did say was that we should all fall flat on our faces before him and repent. That we should pray fervently for our nation which is in GRAVE DANGER. That we pray His wrath would turn from us if we will humble ourselves and seek His face.

I wish her transcript would be published. She spoke the word of God powerfully and with authority- the message the Lord laid heavily on her heart to share. A message she admitted she did not want to bring - she brought it through weeping and great pain. She looked as though she could and would collapse at any moment - Satan did not want her to bring that message. She has posted a prayer guide on her website.

http://www.precept.org/site/PageServer?pagename=gen_AmericaAtTheCrossroads

Please feel free to ask questions. I would encourage you to read God's word (Joel, Amos, Hosea, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Daniel - all the prophets, really - Matthew 24, Revelation 18) and pray that he will give you wisdom and discernment - that He would lay His will upon our hearts.

Praying for Our Nation

Kay Arthur has posted on her website a prayer guide for those willing to pray for our nation. I am including the link:

http://www.precept.org/site/PageServer?pagename=gen_AmericaAtTheCrossroads

I also wanted to share a link to a video that is incredibly eye-opening. Take the time to view it. It concerns the world's food supply and how many of the foods we eat are now experiencing shortages. The worst is yet to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbBS8iS7X2A&feature=email

Pray... Repent... Prepare.

More about the famine

I am in the midst of preparing for the famine - both physically and spiritually. I have only a moment, but I wanted to share with you a link I found today. It relates to others who are being called by the Lord.

chrisfahey.wordpress.com

Pray for our nation... Seek His face... Repent. I am praying for you. Trust in the Lord. There is no reason to fear, He is with us. He will never leave us of forsake us. Put your hope in He who is mighty to save! Jesus Christ is Lord!!!