Creative KJ's Corner Year In Review - Top Blog Post in 2008

It is the last day of 2008 and I can't help but look back over the course of the year at my little corner of the world wide web and reflect on some of my favorite and my most popular posts. I had a lot of fun blogging this past year! I wish I had more time to blog, but with six kids, seven alpacas, a husband, a dog, and three cats, I just don't have the time to sit down and blog or even formulate coherent thoughts most days. When time allowed, however, there was so much fun, crazy, hectic, and strange content that came from my life with all of those people and animals!

My loom knitting and spinning communities have been so much fun for me too! I have really enjoyed creating my loom knitting how to videos and conducting my loom alongs on this blog! I had a really busy year designing loom knitting patterns and this is where I've documented a lot of this work. I really enjoy designing for my family and then sharing these designs with the loom knitting community! Loom knitting has been such a great creative outlet for me!

Looking back over the past twelve months here are some of my favorite, most memorable and/or most popular posts from oldest to newest:

#1

Are you looming without obligation? In this post I wrote about a funny comment I read from a member of my loom knitting community on yahoo. She was commenting about feeling so inadequate because, although she had been looming for awhile, she still plotted along fairly slowly and felt as though she wasn't keeping up with the rest of her looming community. She would get one project done in a week and she kept hearing how so and so got 5 hats, 10 scarves, and 5 pairs of mittens done in one week... Then I read the most hilarious post from another gal saying she felt the same way..so and so made 1,000 sweaters, 50,000 hats, blah, blah, blah. I had to laugh. It was an exaggeration of course, but it was funny none the less!

#2

What are you loom knitting? In this post, I decided to start a loom knitting meme. I was always reading these needle knitting memes and I wanted to start one just for the loom knitters.

#3

My Best Friend Died Yesterday In this post I opened up my heart and poured out all of my raw emotions. I had just found out my best friend died from cancer and I needed to find my voice to release some of my pent up feelings. This post received a lot of page views and people poured out support to me in my time of grief.

#4

Tuesday's Toot - I am a Top Momma! All of my loomy friends and loyal bloggy friends kept me on the Top Momma front page for 10 days! Thanks for giving me that warm fuzzy goodness of sticking around for a few days at least!

#5

Hubby took a tussle with a deer last night! I just finished talking to my hubby maybe 20 minutes prior. I told him I loved him and would see him in about a half hour. I hung up, jumped in the shower, got the girls ready for bed, and just sat down to rock-a-bye baby with my two year old (she still likes some extra special snuggly times with me before night night time), when the phone rang again. It was my hubby! That's strange, I thought when I picked up the phone. He didn't sound so good. He was breathing a little heavy and I could hear the two kids he had with him chattering excitedly in the background. He say's "Yeah, we had an accident."

#6

Wordless Wednesday - We are expecting a pillow and a teddy bear any day now! In this picture post I captured some of the joys of motherhood!

#7

My jam packed weekend of fiber, fun, animals, and friends! In this post I shared pictures and a little story of me meeting one of my online loom knitting friends!

#8

A Harrowing Experience In this post I shared, what is in retrospect, a hilarious tale of me chasing all over the countryside six alpacas hell bent giving me a heart attack!

#9

Spinning like mad I hate to say this, but I have one of those obsessive compulsive personalities. I usually get completely and totally obsessed with something, can't get enough of it, and eventually crash and burn out on it, sometimes I completely abandoned it and never look back (rubberstamping anyone?). Sometimes something else waves itself in front of my face and tempts me away from my current fascination. Well, something waved itself in front of my face and I hate to say it, but I can't seem to stop playing around with my new found toy. I am now spinning with my drop spindle like a mad woman...

#10

Tuesday's Toot - I was on T.V. Yesterday! I got my 15 minutes of fame!

#11

My Crazy September It was crazy. We had a baby (alpaca - in September). I turned 39 (in September). Went to my highschool reunion (in September). Appeared on T.V. (in September). Had a farm tour (in September). My son turned 8 (in September)...

#12

My Loom Knit Dishcloth Design Published in Calendar of Hope! A very popular post! I was very honored to have my loom knitting design published in a needle knitting Calendar put together to benefit Breast Cancer Research!

#13

At 12:42 AM we were awakened by gunshots at the side of our house... A very frightening experience!

#14

Loom Along with me - Half Finger Gloves on long yellow KK Day 1 The first of a 10 day series of video posts of me making a pair of half finger gloves on my long yellow knifty knitter loom! A very popular series of posts!

#15

My new toe socks on the knitting loom! I shared a picture of my latest accomplishment on my knitting loom!

#16

Memory Lane In this post I shared a great way to spend an afternoon...What memories have you uncovered recently?

#17

What do you think? In this post I shared the saga of our stolen dog...

#18

First Lost Tooth on Thanksgiving Day! Another mile-stone documented!

#19

ETA: My most popular post of 2008: The Bounty I documented my trip to the big 2008 Knit and Crochet Out event at the Mall of America and my opportunity to meet Isela Phelps!

Wordless Wednesday - That's My Girl!

Photo removed for protection.

Contest of wills

My husband and I were finishing up some errands this afternoon quick in preperation for my family coming here for our Christmas celebration. He stopped quick at the bookstore (to get me a gift card, I am sure). I was going to just stay in the van and wait but my three year old right away said she had to go potty. I reluctantly got out of the van and headed for the store. My daughter and I went straight to the bathroom and into a stall next to an occupied stall. She right away said she had wet her pants (she hadn't) but she was adament she had. When she gets like that, she flat out refuses to put her pants back on. I didn't have any extra pants in my purse (although there is just about everything else in there :D) so I said to her she had to put them back on, she had no choice. She shook her head fiercely. I again said she had to. She said "No, I don't want to." I said again she had to. She of course got extremely upset at this point and started yelling "No, I don't want to!" I said to her then, "Amanda, you HAVE to have pants on when you go back out in the store rather you want to or not, you have no choice". This got a chuckle out of the occupied stall next to ours. My daughter of course still yelled out, "No, I don't want to." I said then, "Amanda, you can't go out in the store naked!" My daughter innocently looked up at me, tugged at her shirt and said, "But I have a shirt on." LOL!

After the bookstore bathroom incident, we headed to the grocery store. My husband has been battling a cold. He asked me if I had any Kleenix. I reached into my pocket and handed him one. My daughter right away pipped up and said she needed a "Kweenix". My husband told her she didn't need one because her nose wasn't running. She looked at him and said, "I need a Kweenix, I have burgers in my nose!" LOL!

Glittens LAL - Day 4

How to place stitches on DPNs and kitchener stitch the finger flap:

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Copyright 2008 Karen Gielen

Cutting it close...

This is a picture I took of my two year old just yesterday. She is wearing the new Perfect Fit Toddler Mitts I designed recently. Her bangs were the perfect length and she was looking so adorable. I trimmed her hair a few weeks back and it was finally growing in, perfect timing for her 3rd birthday on the 15th.

Here she is now:



She got a hold of the scissors a few hours ago while I was making supper and there is a good 2 inches of her forhead showing! Oh well, at least she has some of her bangs left!

Glittens LAL - Day 3

How to do the short row on the tips of the fingers:

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Copyright 2008 Karen Gielen

I interrup my LAL to appease Robin :D

Here you go Robin:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
I will use whatever. I've wrapped gifts in comics, brown paper bags I've rubber stamped, even fabric. I have also used gift bags if they are handy. I am not loyal to either :D

2. Real tree or Artificial?
I love the smell of real trees but don't have the time to give a real tree the attention it truly needs. I have a fake tree but haven't put it up in years. The tree fit in our old house (it is over 7 feet tall) because of the vaulted ceilings. The ceilings in the house we live in now are standard height and the tree would look rediculous in here. So, once again, I am not loyal to either :D...I do however like to put garland up on our deck with lights!

3. When do you put up the tree?
See answer 2.

4. When do you take the tree down?
Answer 2 again.

5. Do you like eggnog?
Yes, I do actually. I've even had it for breakfast :D

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
My first walkman!

7. Hardest person to buy for?
Starting a few years ago I began making my gifts. My dad is by far the toughest to make for, then I would say my brother. I see a box of homemade cookies in their future again this year :D

8. Easiest person to buy for?
My mother. I can think of a billion things I would love to knit or crochet for her. Then, I would say my kids. It seems lately, everything I design they squeal with delight and can't wait for me to make them a pair or they just plan snatch it when I am not looking.

9. Do you have a nativity scene?
Yes I do. I cross stitched one many years ago, way back when cross stitching was my passion! LOL

10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Mail.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Nothing rings a bell. I must have liked everything I've ever received.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
It's a Wonderful Life with James Stewart. I cry everytime I see it. Then my next favorite is How the Grinch Stole Christmas, tears for that one too.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Oh, I start designing and making gifts 2-3 weeks before Christmas. I am a big procrastinator.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
No, I don’t think so.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Gingerbread cookies. In fact, now that I write this, I am going to have to make some.

16. Lights on the tree?
Lights, but I prefer just one color. I just love it when I see a tree light up all in one color! Multi colored lights I think look gaudy.

17. Favorite Christmas song?
Oh Little Town of Bethlehem and What Child is This?

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Since Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are always shared between our house and my three step children's mother's house, we couldn't travel if we wanted to.

19. Can you name all of Santa’s reindeer?
Of course.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
I have a beautiful angel with these cool fiber optic lights, but as I mentioned in answer number 2, I haven't had it up in years.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
We always opened gifts on Christmas Eve after attending church services when I was a child. My husband never objected so I've carried on with the tradition in my family.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year?
Not being able to go to the store to buy shampoo or toothpaste because there are a million people in the stores and you can hardly move and people are just downright rude and obnoxious.

23. Favorite ornament theme or color?
I love the old world look.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?
Pumpkin pie!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year?
You know, there isn't a single thing on my wish list this year. So, what I really want this year is lots of time with family and loved ones.

26. Who is most likely to blog about this?
It's anyone's guess.

27. Lights, blinking or always on?
Always on. Blinking lights are in that same category of multiple colored lights, I find it gaudy.

Glittens LAL - Day 2

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Copyright 2008 Karen Gielen

Glittens LAL - Day 1

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Copyright 2008 Karen Gielen

Note: the LAL is for the right glove only, to complete a pair, pick up the pattern here.