[LIFE STUFF] We're Married! Plus Christmas Projects

Now’s about the time of year where I forget I own a blog because I can’t post a whole heck of a lot (read: Christmas gifts ahoy). So in lieu of knitty updates, I figured I’d come and let you all know our big news: we finally got married!

Yes, as of October 23rd, 2021, I’m no longer a single lady and I couldn’t be happier.

We had two amazing honeymoons, one that included brewery-hopping in Asheville, NC, and another that involved celebrating one of our friends’ weddings and maybe visiting a few more breweries. Our wedding itself was also at a brewery, so if you couldn’t tell, breweries are our thing (one of many, thankfully).

I guess that means I found a guy who was finally knit-worthy and he’ll be getting a new hat or socks for every holiday henceforth. I don’t think he’s mad about it.

Life’s been pretty crazy for us both since the wedding, being that we’ve barely been home, but things have weirdly been winding down as we head into festive season. We’ve both been boosted and are looking forward to celebrating (and baking) with family and friends over the next month. Plus, it’s Scott’s birthday on the 23rd so we’re throwing the first gathering at our house since the panorama started (we haven’t really had anyone over since I moved in last year). It seems like a new world to actually be prepping and tidying for guests; I’m not sure I know how to plan a real event anymore (wedding excluded, assuming everyone had a good time, haha).

As far as Christmas crafting goes, I’ve actually completed a lot of it (shocking, I know). I plan on starting and completing two more major projects this weekend and have a pair of socks on the needles that should take me less than a week to complete, so I have full confidence I’ll be able to crank out lots of handmade goodness before the big day. Of course, I also have loads of other gift ideas I can work on as supplemental gifts if the main events are done with plenty of time, but that means I’m slacking on all my yarn advents. In other words, I’ll be relaxing on a pile of minis come Christmas Eve. Speaking of, I also bought a Christmas Eve cast-on box from Dragon Hoard Yarn. Ayiyi…

Speaking of yarn I bought specifically for the holidays, if you want to indulge in all my Christmas yarn advents, make sure to check out my Instagram story highlights. Each advent yarn is accompanied by one of my favorite Christmas songs and tags the dyer, so you’re in for a festive treat!

And then we’ve got Friendmas coming up, as well as the annual Bake & Bitch with two of my besties where we have lofty cookie exchange goals and just end up salting the dough with our tears and drinking wine.

Wow, this almost sounds like a normal Christmas. I even took my mom to see Sarah Brightman’s “A Winter Symphony” tour on Black Friday, which was fantastical. I’ve been obsessed with Sarah Brightman since my parents brought home the Phantom of the Opera OBC recording when I was six years old, so I’ve now seen her performa all my favorites three times. It was such a great night and I’m really excited that this type of stuff is coming back.

PLEASE GET YOUR BOOSTERS AND BELIEVE IN SCIENCE SO WE CAN KEEP GOING TO THESE THINGS THANK YOU!

Anyway, we’ve obviously got a ton of stuff going on and I’m excited for all of it, even if I’m exhausted just thinking about it. Stay tuned for lots of project posts coming soon once I don’t need to keep them in hiding!

In the meantime, I’m:

Reading: In a Holidaze (ie: Christmas goo from last year’s December BOTM to relax after my heavy Feminist Book Club read, We Keep the Dead Close, which was really amazing but hooooooweee).

Listening: My 2021 Spotify Wrapped

Watching: Like… all the Christmas movies I can get my hands on

[LIFE STUFF] My Successful Philly Birthday Beer and Yarn Extravaganza

Given the state of the world (ie: hi, there’s still a pandemic), it goes without saying that Scott and I haven’t partaken in much travel over the past 1.5 years, which is terrible because traveling is one of our favorite things to do together. Even worse, it’s been just as long since we last visited Philly. In fact, the last time we drove down for the day was to check out Wonderspaces, drink beer, and buy yarn a week before covid really took a turn for the worse in March 2020.

So yeah, now that we got vaccinated like anyone with a brain and a sliver of scientific literacy should, we’ve decided we’ve done all we can to protect ourselves and are trying to get back to some semblance of normalcy.

Cue my 38th birthday where all I wanted to do was head back to our city and continue my never-ending search for an authentic Full English (mission accomplished at The Dandelion, by the way). I may or may not have picked up some yarn along the way, so here’s what’s good:

Yarnphoria Haul

I hit up Yarnphoria for a couple reasons: 1) I needed (wanted) yarn to start a Rosy Blooms by Stephen West and 2) the owner just happens to have the cutest yarn shop dog ever - little Miss Mabel - and after two days away from our dogs, Scott and I were missing our little monsters and needed a hot minute with a pup. Here’s what I ended up picking out:

• Misti Alpaca Tonos Carnaval, Surf Blue (2 hanks)

• Malabrigo Mechita, Carnival (1 hank)

Both yarns are accessible (ie: at a decent price point), so this visit didn’t hurt the bank and I’m grateful for that!

Loop Haul

And then, of course, we trekked a few blocks and passed a bunch of garden wine bars we’d visit later to buy even more yarn at my Philly go-to, Loop. It’s rare that I head into the city and don’t drop in to see what the latest stash is (mostly so I can add it to my own stash), and this latest trip didn’t disappoint. Here’s what I came home with to make a Baubles by Andrea Mowry:

• Hedgehog Fibres Sock, Coral (1 hank)

• Emma’s Yarn Splendid Singles, Mint to Be (1 hank)

• Fiberstory Fave Sock, Cake (2 hanks)

Based on my new yarn collection alone, it should come as no surprise that I can’t complain about my birthday weekend in the city. We stopped at all our favorites (like Monk’s Cafe) and discovered new favorites (like Tattooed Mom and 1 Tippling Place), finally got to the Philadelphia Magic Gardens, and walked something like 20 miles in two days in between enjoying cocktails at top notch establishments. Scott made my birthday one to remember and I think he even had fun, too. Super grateful to be with someone like me who can have fun anywhere and likes to fly by the seat of his pants so we can try new things and discover new places. If this was any indication of what our honeymoon in Asheville will be like, we’re in for a good time.

PS: Speaking of our honeymoon, we’ve started a wedding website for anyone who’s interested in following my adventures in being stressed. I can’t believe we’ve only got four months left and I feel like there’s so much to do (although we’ve got all the major things done). Make sure to check out the sneak peeks for all the fun things I’m ordering off etsy because I want all the unique handcrafts I can find; basically, there will be elephants and unicorns everywhere!

[LIFE STUFF] We're Engaged!

Well, friends, we made it. 1.5 years and most of that spent in covid lockdown, we’ve decided we can tolerate one another enough to spend the rest of our lives together.

Not that it should come as a surprise. Scott pretty much moved in with me after covid shut everything down (over a year ago) and then I moved into his place back in the fall and we adopted another dog together. Heck, we even went to look at rings together a few weekends ago.

Turns out said ring was burning a hole in his pocket and he couldn’t wait until our socially distanced OCMD trip at the end of the month to propose, so he dropped the ring in my hand as we were getting into bed the other night. Okay, that’s a lie. Technically, Ziggy dropped the ring into my hand after asking if I’d spend the rest of my life with his papa. It was kind of adorable, even though his paws were wet and muddy from having just been outside.

We’re planning a “low maintenance” wedding at one of the local breweries for this coming October, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you saw more posts from me complaining about how stressed I am (this is why I’ve divided my blog into categories so you can skip my whining if/when you want to - you’re welcome).

All that said, we’ve received a LOT of love from friends and family since announcing our engagement on April Fool’s Day (our timing is great) and we’re looking forward to celebrating with everyone once we’re able. Scott and I are both fully vaccinated now and it seems like most of our guest list will be in good shape come fall, plus we don’t want a long engagement or a huge shindig, so we think we can pull off something safe.

Now I just need to lose 40lbs so I can buy the $64 dress I found online (it’s gonna happen, fam, don’t roll your eyes - I’m already down almost 30lbs since January).

[LIFE STUFF] I'm the New Knitability Editor!

I mean, that’s all there is to say, right? That I’m the new editor of Knitability and I died a happy panda. The end.

No, seriously, I about melted when Dan and Kay (of Bakery Bears fame) approached me to help with their regular publication.

For those of you who don’t know, Bakery Bears is a bi-weekly video podcast published on YouTube. With it comes the option to join Patreon for exclusive content like an audio podcast on the off weeks, an annual advent calendar, early access to patterns, and (of course) and subscription to their exclusive magazine, Knitability.

As a long-time patron, I’ve been reading Knitability since its inception, so I about passed out when I was invited to edit the content and design, as well as help manage and plan designer and maker interviews.

You can access every issue of Knitability at the $2/mo tier, which is more than generous in my not-so-humble opinion, especially considering the quality content (we’ve featured interviews with designers like Susan B. Anderson, Jenn Steingass, Joji Locatelli, just to name a few). The digital-only magazine also features patron content so our worldwide-but-niche community can get to know one another on a more personal level.

I know it sounds like I’m selling you on subscribing, and maybe I am because it’s truly an amazing publication, but mostly I’m excited to be involved and can’t stop talking about to anyone who will listen (and even those who won’t). If you’re interested in seeing what I’m doing in my free time now, make sure to subscribe! You can thank me later.

[LIFE STUFF] Valentine's Day Challenge

This Valentine’s Day, I feel lucky to have met someone who adds to my life in the way that Scott does. In previous relationships, I feel like I was looking for someone to complete me and fill some hole society said I was meant to have if I didn’t have a significant other. That feeling - looking to complete myself - contributed to a few pretty toxic relationships I should have bowed out of earlier than I did, but felt like I couldn’t out of obligation to… the world? I dunno. It’s pretty weak reasoning when you think about it, but I think we can all agree that societal pressures to wife up the older you get can feel like a huge weight on your shoulders. That’s not to say everyone I dated was terrible; we just weren’t right for each other and I spent way too long forcing things to work so people wouldn’t be disappointed in me than moving on and finding someone like Scott, who made me realize I’m a complete person with or without him, but our role as partners is to bring out the best in each other.

Turns out I’m a sap.

In honor of Valentine’s Day (which, yes, is a BS Hallmark holiday, I get it, but maybe quiet down and let people enjoy things), I thought I’d kick off my new “Life Stuff” section by posting the Valentine’s Day Challenge I saw floating around Facebook this year. Feel free to tell me your story!

Where did you meet: Bumble. We chatted for a week to determine if the other was psycho before meeting.

First date: Impromptu meet up at 313. We didn’t intend to meet that night, but it happened anyway. I was wearing a Father John Misty t-shirt, ripped jean shorts, glasses, and had kind of brushed my hair, and yet for some reason, we’re still here.

How long have you all been together: August 2019

Age difference: 3.5 years (I’m the old hag)

Who was interested first: Technically Scott because we matched when I swiped

Who is taller: He is, until I wear heels, bwahahaha (if we ever go out again)

Who said I love you first: He did

Most impatient: Definitely me. It happens now or hear me scream.

Most sensitive: I don’t really think either of us are sensitive. I guess if we had to pick, it would be me. We kind of just make fun of each other all day, though.

Most stubborn: Me. Again. Usually for no reason.

Loudest: Me. You can hear me coming a mile away. I’m making myself sound like a real catch here.

Falls asleep first: He does because he has to wake up at 4:30. I wake up, too, but then I roll over and fall asleep with the puppies.

Cooks better: He cooks, I bake. Unless it’s schnitzel or spaetzle, then I win.

Better morning person: What is morning? Definitely him.

Better driver: He thinks he is, but I’m a demon in my Mini. And if he thinks I’m a bad driver, he can drive to allllllll our vacation destinations.

Most competitive: Scott scoffed and said me, and that it’s insane that I have him beat because he is both stubborn and competitive. I have literally taken up hobbies just to prove to someone I hate I’m better at it than they are. Not sure if that’s competitive or petty, though.

Funniest: I think we’re both really mean and people think we’re joking.

Where do you eat out most as a couple? Random breweries (so food trucks) and we both really like Indian and Thai. Back before covid, we went to Tavern on Liberty a lot for their Wednesday pizza specials, but that might be it.

Who is more social? We’re both pretty social, but I’m usually texting a lot more to the point of annoyance

Who is the neat freak? Neither of us are good at tidying on the reg, but if someone is going to freak out about clutter, it’ll be me.

Who spends the most? I thought we spend about the same, but then Scott reminded me I just spent $300 on a 10-year-long cross stitch project and bunny wreath supplies and I’m like okay, might be me.

Where was your first kiss? After I woke up one morning post-terrible movie I picked out, probably La Llorona.

Do you get flowers often? When he wants to. It’s not an obligation, but I do love the surprise when he gets them.

How long did it take to get serious? I mean, we basically moved in together in March (after six months of dating).

Plans date night? He does. I plan enough at work all day. Just tell me where to be and when to show up. I’ll let you know if there’s something I wanna do.

Who picks where you go to dinner? Both usually, but mostly me right now since I’m doing Noom, the actual worst weight loss program ever.

Who cries more? I’ve cried in front of Scott maybe once in 1.5 years, so I guess me by default.

Who has more tattoos? Me because Scott is super straight edge and I was a rebel back in college with my ugly tribal heart tramp stamp.

Who sings better? Me #firstsoprano and he’s mad I answered it that fast

Hogs the remote? He does, unless he’s reading, and then I get all my YouTube Amberlynn Reid drama while I craft.