Catching Up, and The Mad Man Knitting.

Whew. The last few months have been.... Busy. As some of you may know, I have three little monsters  darling children. :) My oldest is going to be 7 in February, and this year is second grade. She's always been a kid who absolutely LOVES school, and is completely devastated when it's the weekend or any kind of day off. So the fact that she's been having some difficulty settling down and getting in trouble has been a source of frustration, concern, and just all around craziness. However, we're now almost two months in, and we seem to be hitting a bit of an even plateau, so I'm hoping it continues on. Middle child started kindergarten. She becomes equally distraught and devastated if there should be a weekend or a day off. However, she is flourishing, and is doing absolutely amazing so far. Middle has Sensory Processing Disorder (as do I), and it has proven to be a huge hurdle the last year or so. The best way to explain it is like a traffic jam in the brain. She has different limits for different things than most kids, and if she's pushed too far, she tends to just shut down. And we know that's happened when I get the blank, unwavering Wall Look. When I see that, I know it's time to go have some quiet time in her room, working on resetting and getting back to a place where she can cope with everything. And in this crazy house, it can happen a lot. We recently completed Occupational Therapy for her SPD, and I"m thrilled to say that the ladies who worked with us are fantastic, and helped me learn what to look for, and how to handle what the disorder throws at us. I also learned a lot about myself, but I'll save that for another day. Little, she's a bit put out that she's the only one who doesn't go to school, and keeps telling me "In two weeks, I gunna go my school maaaaaaam!!!" Mmmm, sure. Two weeks. Try a year and a half. Whatever makes you happy though.

So over summer, I had a herd of orders all due towards the August/September dates, which I worked like a crazy person to finish. One of the first orders was for a twin set.

Each set also had a hat and bootie set with it. Next, I had photo prop sets to finish for a very close friends incoming bundle. The decided they wanted baby to be a surprise, so I designed a boy set and a girl set. This was the result:

Excitingly, they had a baby girl whom they named Eliza. Mommy sent me photos of her in her outfit, which I will post once I finally upload them. Next was a layette set. Now, this set is a 4 piece set, and I have photos of each piece. I really do love it, and wish I had been able to make something like this for my girls when they were little. However, I wasn't a crocheter at the time. This set however, has been a source of frustration, and strained friendship.

 

 
Seriously, how cute? I was SO proud of this one. So, when it came time to deliver it, the recipient told me she hadn't taken her break yet, and hadn't been able to go take money out, which I said was fine, and to drop it off when she had a chance. Fast forward three months. I've messaged her numerous times, and was told each time she would be dropping off the money, which never happened. Finally I asked either for the money, or the set back. Her reply was that she would be dropping it off, and that she was sorry she hadn't addressed this before, she's just been tight on money. I understand that. I know how it works as a single mom. I know how hard it is. And honestly, I wasn't trying to be a giant ass and take every last penny. Had she messaged me and simply said, look, I'm broke, and I can't pay, my response would have been something to the effect of, that's fine, just let me know when you're more prepared. When I started selling things, I knew that there would need to be a line drawn between professional and personal relationships to some degree, but I never wanted that. I wanted it to be friendly, and much like a family. I want the people who love my things to be able to talk to me, and should a trouble arise, be able to come to me, and even if they don't want to go into detail, just let me know it might take a bit longer. I know the struggles, and I know the frustration or  anger behind not having money. Even now, with a husband who works and provides for us, we still run into snags and find ourselves having to rethink a lot of things and cut back. Life is never easy, and I hate knowing that people close to me feel it more than others. This also brings me to the final part of my nattering session. I was flipping through Facebook, and someone had posted a link to a blog written by a man. Who knits teddy bears. At first, I was like whaaaat?? And after the first post, I found myself scrolling back, and reading his whole story. What I found, was an awesome story of perseverance, strength, determination, and behind it is a man and his cat who simply won't take the hits of life laying down. His Facebook page is Mad Man Knitting, and his blog is http://madmanknitting.wordpress.com/ . Go take a look and read his story through. It's heartbreaking to read, but that isn't the purpose of it. Making his way and building a life for himself is the main goal, and any of you that head that way and go look at the amazing bears he has will be helping. Know someone who needs a teddy bear, or just someone who could use some love from a soft cuddly friend? Gregory has what you're looking for!