Happy Friday!

 This week has been a bit stressful. The schools have been dismissing early because of Parent-Teacher conferences, so our routines are thrown off, A LOT! There's a plus to it being the end of the week...the weekend is coming rather quickly. 

This weekend is going to be chock full of cleaning, laundry and preparing for the busy week ahead. I start my new job on Tuesday, so our schedules and routines will change. It shouldn't be too much of a change, however I am slowly driving myself crazy because my youngest's before care is 'waitlisted' until I don't know when. She's been waitlisted for about a month now. You would think that they'd have hired people to open up a few spots for those kids that are wait listed. I've been in constant contact with them, with NO updates as of yet. Other than 'we're working on it.' 

With that said, now I need to arrange to have someone come to the house to be with Paige and bring her to the bus stop. Of course, my oldest son could do it, but I can't rely on him as he's moody and not home as much as he should be. He works, has a girlfriend and bowls so his schedule is a bit full. I am going to speak with him and see if he can help out with bringing the little one to the bus stop. My father-in-law is going to help, and I have one friend that can help too. I just don't want to rely on others. I should be able to just drop my kids off at their respective schools for before care and head to work. But alas, one before care has to throw a wrench into the mix. 

Anyhow. I've started a draft of my hexagon cardigan that I'm attempting to design. Designing is HARD. I am using a standard 'base' to start with, but I want to add some flair to it, so I've been frogging and restitching over and over and over again. I think I'm going to 'draw' it out and then figure out how to write the pattern. 

Once next week hits, I am going to be busy...so I might not be able to update. I will try. After being unemployed for a little over a month, it starts to wear you thin. Making money stretch is really tough. I went food shopping and spent almost $103 on food. Yes, I brought home a decent amount, but I didn't get extras like ice tea, or snacks. I needed to get the essentials to get through the next week or so. I just hope the amount of meat I've purchased, stretches to when I get a paycheck. Fingers crossed on that. 

My mini-break is done.  I hope to update again soon. 

See you on the flip side. 

Happy Hooking,
Michelle

It all began...

January 2016, a few short weeks after my father passed away unexpectedly. I needed a coping mechanism to keep my mind busy. I am a creative person and while completely spacing out from reality to grieve, I saw a friend crocheting hats, blankets and it was so pretty.  She took yarn and made things. Very pretty things. Useful things. It was her side gig. She made money from them. She got commissions to make things. So I dove in. I started watching videos, I grabbed materials from Walmart and A.C. Moore (a relic as it is no longer in business) and I took a stab at making a granny square. Then I made another.

I returned to work after being away for 2 weeks to grieve and say 'goodbye' to my Dad. When I arrived, my heart wasn't in it anymore. Things were different. People I grew close to and enjoyed working with, either had moved to a different department with different hours or were no longer working at the company. The energy and morale in the office was off. There was a tension that was best described as sh!t sucks.

It was then that I decided I was going to be home with my then 11 month old daughter. 

See, my contract to hire position was doomed from the start of my time at the company. The day I started, they announced a merger and that jobs would be eliminated as the merger was finalized.  Thus making my contract to hire position, a temporary contract position. I was promised time and time again that my contract would still lead to hire at the end of the term. They were essentially blowing smoke up my a$$ because they knew they were keeping their people and pushing me out. They pushed my direct report, out. I should have followed, but I stayed as there was no one else to do her job. I took over her job and worked right up to the day my Dad was life flighted to the hospital. During my time away, the merger finalized and things changed, practically overnight. 

When I put my two weeks notice in...

The VP of HR tried to 'keep' me from leaving by having me interview for my position. So I did, just to see if they'd offer me my job. I went through 3 rounds of interviews. My last day was quickly approaching and when they took the position down from their 'available positions' page, I figured they were going to offer me the position. NO. They eliminated the position as they decided to keep their people in place and just move them to the location I was at. NICE. I packed my things up, told them Good Day and left before my 2 weeks was completely up (short by 2 days). The agency that placed me, paid me through the end of the month (which was 2 weeks beyond my notice) and apologized for the problems I had towards the end.  

The beginning of my obsession with all things yarn...

My first 'project' was a baby blanket for a lucky winner on my 'business' page. It was a cute car seat blanket in the colors of the university the parents had attended. Then, I made a blanket for my friends daughter. Of course, it wasn't ready in time for her shower, but she got it a short time after the baby was born. I made numerous other things for family and friends, at no charge, just to get myself out there. Then I found an amazing pattern by Make and Do Crew for slippers with flip flop soles! I immediately printed the paid pattern (hello, no ads!) and got to work.  I picked up one dollar flip flops (they're currently $4.99 but they do go on sale for $1 towards the end of June, I believe) from Old Navy. I made a few for myself and then made a few for my sister-in-law. When she said they were worthy of being sold, I put them on Etsy. I sold them for about 2 months, until I sold out of the flip flops I had gotten. I 'discontinued' the listing with intentions of relisting them the next year.

Life took a turn...

I went back to work. I had to. Unemployment was slowly running out and my daughter was 18 months old. I had to get back into the swing of things because having one GOOD income coming in, wasn't enough. Plus, I needed the adult interaction. Although I was working, my crochet journey continued, making presents for Christmas, etc. I closed my Etsy shop because it wasn't getting the traction it once did. I tried to do a craft show, and didn't even make the money back that I paid for the table spot. Life continued on it's merry little way, with all the fun and dysfunction that life throws at you. We had our 2nd daughter in October 2018, after a loss in November 2017. In December 2019, I made the decision to unsubscribe to the monthly subscription that females receive when they hit puberty (or just before). As all good things (although yucky) come to an end and my life was just getting back to normal, the rug got ripped out from under us...again.

Enter COVID-19, Stage Left...

It was March 9th, 2020. Covid interrupted everyone's lives, across the globe. The same day that I started my new job, NJ shut down to 'Flatten the Curve' from Covid-19. It was supposed to be for 2 weeks, but it lasted for MONTHS! The unknowns were there and I was scared for myself and my family. I didn't know if my husband and I would still have jobs, if the kids (more so my then 5 year old Preschooler) would return to school and what the fall out would be of wearing masks, EVERYWHERE. Holidays with family were weird. Visiting with family was limited and extracurricular activities became non-existent during this time of uncertainty. 

My husband and I continued working. He worked a lot of overtime. He worked a total of 3 jobs. 2 of which were side jobs that just brought in some extra cash because, let's face it, having 2 growing kids doesn't stop when the world shuts down.  Zoom "party" calls became a thing. Tiktok became a thing. A huge thing. I found a community of crocheters. They hyped me up big time! I started a Hooked on Sunshine afghan with a girlfriend of mine and her friend.  We would 'zoom' call and crochet at the same time - essentially a stitch and b!tch. They finished their afghans where as, mine is about 85% done. And it's been 2 years since I started it. I should really finish it! I got a Cricut Maker for my 40th birthday and have been making all the decals. I even got a t-shirt press (not the heat press but the big presses that the t-shirt shops on the boardwalk have)! 

I changed jobs a few times because there were caps to the position and if I wanted to 'move up' in the company I had to move laterally and take a pay cut just to move up. I wasn't willing to do that. 

Covid hit our house December 2021

My littlest love brought it home, then my middle love got it, then my husband, and then my oldest love (son). All over Christmas break. Thus making Christmas 2021 very very sh!tty. I never got it. I started a job within the school district, to 'save' money on child care and to have a similar schedule to the kids. I'd be able to get them on and off the bus and have the same days off as them. I figured it would work out the best so I wasn't having to schedule time off/call out when the kids didn't have school, etc. Boy was I wrong. My middle love brought home covid the end of the first full week of school. Then my littlest love got it. Then my husband. Then I got it. It was mild and I wouldn't have known I had it, if I didn't test. I started my position in the schools in October. Then I got it AGAIN in November and it was worse. Needless to say, my position that I had at the time, slowly became the end of me working within the school district. Every time a kid would pop up sick in my class, I would get sick and be sicker than sick. Like, dying because it was a mutated cold (not covid) and took over my body. I left the school district in January and have been fighting to find a good full time job since. 

Employment Secured...finally.

I start my new (and hopefully last for a LONG time) position on Tuesday. This coming Tuesday. I'm SCRAMBLING to get before care situated for my littlest love, because the before care is 'waitlisted' due to staffing shortages. Of course, she's been waitlisted for almost a month now. They should have found someone by now. Everything else is all good to go. Before and after care is set for my middle love while only after care is set for my littlest love. During all this, I've managed to keep my house clean. Which has been a major cause of my anxiety. Not to mention, I've crocheted new things. I even set up my crafting area. I used to have a nice office/craft space but when my son moved home in August 2021, I lost that space. It is what it is. I've adapted and overcame it all. 

Now, with all of the above said, I am HOPING to start designing some pieces. I'm currently obsessed with Hexagon Cardigans. Just simple hexagon cardigans. Both of my girls are getting one. My middle love already has hers and she wears it pretty much EVERY day because she loves it SO much! 

I hope to be able to share my new designs soon.  Once I get done with my littlest loves hexagon cardigan, I'll be working on mine. Once that's done, I plan to design a hexagon cardigan of my own...and have it tested. If it works out well, then I'll place it up on here for sale (to start!). 

Check back for updates!!