Happy Halloween! Knitted Ghost

Hello Friends,

I hope you are well. I hope that you are having a great Halloween! I knitted up this little ghost for Halloween the past couple of days. His name is Gus on the pattern I used, and he was such a fun and quick knit to knit up just in time for Halloween.

I used the pattern Gus and Augustus Ghosts by Patricia L Clark found on Ravelry. I used some worsted weight white yarn that was leftover in my stash and used size 3.75 mm circular needles. The pattern calls for using double pointed needles, but I had no problems with using circular needles instead. I used polyester stuffing to fill the ghost and I used thread to sew the eyes. 

He fits in nicely in the apartment beside his pumpkin friend. He is trying his hardest to be scary but he is way too cute!

He knits up a short and small size and his style has the flowy bottom made by knitting purl stitches. The other ghost in the pattern is his friend Augustus, who is taller and skinnier. I hope to knit him up for next Halloween and they haunt together.

Joining along with Frontier Dreams for Crafting On and with As Kat Knits for Unraveled Wednesday.

I will share some more updates with you soon on knitting plans and reading updates. Thank you for visiting!

Have a great day!

Finished Ribbed Fingerless Mitts

Hello Friends,

I had a wonderful birthday last Wednesday and thank you for the birthday wishes it meant a lot to me. I will share some photos from the day in my next post. I have finished knitting the ribbed fingerless mitts pattern by Kathy North. I like this pattern because it is so simple and I love how the ribbed stitches look on the mitts. I chose this dark gray color for the mitts this time using Patons Kroy sock yarn. I used the fingering yarn so I went up in the number of stitches I cast on so I could get the right gauge for the pattern. The original pattern calls for worsted weight yarn, so I doubled the pattern and cast on 60 stitches onto size 3.25 mm circular needles.

Pattern: Ribbed Fingerless Mitts by Kathy North on Ravelry

These will be great mittens for transitioning to cooler weather in the Fall. I am looking forward to wearing them now when it is a bit chilly and the perfect temperature for fingerless mittens.

Thank you for visiting my blog and hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Thoughts on Turning 30

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. Tomorrow is my 30th birthday! I can't believe the day has finally arrived. In some ways I feel 30 and am ready for this change and some ways I still feel too young and also a bit nervous. Turning 30 this year has come with a lot of reflection time. Ever since January of this year I have been thinking about what turning 30 means to me and if I am ready. I realized that turning 30 is the beginning of a new chapter of life for me. I am leaving my twenties behind and moving on to being 30 when I am happy in a job I love, surrounded by positive people in my life, and opening up to new possibilities and opportunities.

My twenties were for figuring out what I wanted to do in a career and who I was. I started out in one career and realized it was not the right fit for me and then made the decision to change careers. Now I am in a career I enjoy and feel like there are so many opportunities there for career growth and development. I was placed there on a contract earlier this year while working for a temp agency. Now I am so grateful that I chose the assignment and went into office administration and am in my current position of Data entry administrator.

At my sister's bridal shower in June 2018

I have been working on focusing on my goals more and more. Lately I have been thinking of making progress towards my personal goals and focusing on self care. I have made more of an effort to spend time doing things that make me feel fulfilled and a sense of accomplishment like knitting and blogging. I have been looking inward for the answers to what makes me happy and feel fulfilled, and I have been able to feel content most of the time. That might also come with getting older as you learn about yourself you can create a life you love because you know what works for you. I think I understand myself and that I need time to refresh by setting aside time to write goals and my focus when things get busy or stressful. I am more confident than I have ever been that I can take on challenges that come my way.

At my sister's wedding September 2018

My twenties were amazing, I met my boyfriend of now 5 + years, moved to Toronto to live with him, changed careers, my sister got married, I was her Maid of Honor, and I kept blogging throughout my twenties sharing my life and interests with you all. I cannot wait to see what the thirties have in store for me!

Tomorrow on my birthday, I will be going into the office for a regular day of work, then I will be going for dinner with my boyfriend to an Italian restaurant in the evening to celebrate.  On the weekend I will be spending time with family going to dinner.

I am excited for this new chapter to begin and feel like the best is yet to come.

Here's to 30!

Have a wonderful day

Thankful

Hello Friends,

I hope you are doing well. I have had a busy week full of good moments. We had a Thanksgiving potluck lunch at work on Thursday, and I made some cranberry sauce to bring to the lunch. I used a recipe from Simply Recipes for the first time and it turned out pretty tasty. I have also been making butternut squash risotto dishes today to bring to Thanksgiving dinners this weekend. Because I am vegetarian, I wanted to offer to provide a dish I can eat as my main and others can eat as their sides with their turkey. I used Maddie Lymburner's vegan butternut squash risotto recipe from her YouTube channel and it is so delicious. I love how it used nutritional yeast which I love and it is such a good alternative to using dairy.

Butternut Squash Risotto

I bought these flowers to bring for my parents for Thanksgiving today. I found them at the Superstore and just loved the pumpkin pot and the detail on the pumpkin.

I love this hand towel I bought in the summer. It has the ingredients list and directions to make a pumpkin pie. I love using festive hand towels in the kitchen around this time of the year. I might try to follow the recipe to make one this year!

I have been working on knitting the second mitten of the fingerless mittens. I have been making steady progress on it this week but had to frog it a couple of times due to dropped stitches which makes it look loose, so I would rather take it apart and make the changes to be happy with how it turns out. I should be done them soon! Then I will focus on sewing up the seams for the Wool and the Gang Farrah Billie Jean top.

Fingerless Mittens by Kathy North. Pattern from Ravelry

I love this time of the year because it reminds me to be thankful for what I have. I love being surrounded by family for our Thanksgiving meal and enjoying the holiday together. I am so thankful for time spent together and the delicious food we share.

Thank you for visiting my blog today. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving if you celebrate here in Canada. I hope you enjoy your weekend!

Have a great day!