Sunday, December 29, 2013

Thankfulness

Hello and thanks for stopping by!  I spent yesterday afternoon printing, cutting and folding some thank you notes to send to family and friends who were kind enough to give me a gift over the holidays.  Now the fact is, I did not learn to do this from my mother.  I also am not sure who sent me my first thank you note, but I do know this -- it's a very old-fashioned and nice thing to do.  Buddy supervises.


In this day and age of emails and text message communication.. there is something wonderful about taking the time to perform the written word.  When I began working on my Christmas cards I was kind of horrified at how out of practice I am with writing with pen and ink, my hand would cramp up!  So, I am going to make an effort to write more often.  I have an aunt in Tennessee, the last of my mother's siblings, and she loves to receive letters.  I owe her one.  Do you write thank you notes?  If you've never done it, you should try it, you might like it! :-)


My blog friend Gracie hosted a knit/crochet get-together on Friday.  She has such a charming and comfortable living room - I love all her collectibles.  This is Taci.  Gracie served us some tea and some goodies her daughters made.  Betsy brought gluten/dairy free cookies that were delicious!


Gracie and her daughter - Taci taught them both how to do Continental knitting, holding the thread/yarn in the left hand.  They both were using the English method, also called the Throw or American method - where you carry the thread in the right hand and have to stop and pick up the thread and carry it around the needle.  Which method do you use?


Betsy brought her mittens to work on - she is making them for underprivileged children in a school in her city of Spokane.  Isn't that nice?  Dayle and I donated funds to buy the yarn because we think what she is doing is just wonderful.


I forgot my yarn, but no matter.. I got to hold baby Rose!  And I rocked her to get her to sleep.. I enjoyed that so much.  


After a nice visit I headed off to the pool.  Today we're going to a board party for the Friends of Multnomah Falls at one of our board members home in Lake Oswego.  She is from Texas and makes a feast of Tex-Mex food for us!  

What plans do you have for New Years Eve?  We will do what we always do.. stay in, drink some sparkling cider and watch the ball drop on TV.  Aren't we just wild and crazy?  LOL!

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  *H*A*P*P*Y* *N*E*W* *Y*E*A*R*!*
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((hugs)), Teresa :-) 




24 comments:

  1. A baby hug, lovely! I love the thank you notes. It makes me smile that you've discovered crackers!
    CN x

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  2. What a lovely day Teresa. When I knit I hold the yarn in my right hand but I sort of thread it round with my idex finger so I don't pause. It's interesting how people have different techniques. Here's to a great 2014 and more blogging friendship we're driving to see Miss Daisy. .lol..hugs xx

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  3. Your NYE plans sound just like ours. :) I love to write notes by hand and I try to do it often. While my kids were very small, I found I was writing by hand much less often in general, though, because I was so busy with little ones, and my handwriting really suffered! I used to pride myself on writing nicely. I had to practice a lot to get it back to looking nice! I'm glad I did, though, because I think good handwriting is a lost art. It looks like you had a very nice time with the ladies. This seems like such a lovely group and I'm glad you all have each other nearby.

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  4. It is so lovely that you get together regularly with your bloggy friends, what a treat.

    We are enjoying those in-between days, just relaxing as a family. Bliss!

    Helenxx

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  5. Hello Teresa. Yes I do write thankyou notes and my grandchildren send them to me as well. Hope they will keep up with that. In actual fact they all love writing.
    Graham and I are going to be having a quiet evening together at home on New Year's Eve. Hugs Anne x

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  6. Yes, I do send out hand-written thank you cards when the proper thing to do is send one. I do believe those people of our generation were brought up to say thank you and to send thank you cards. It is becoming a lost art. Everyone like to receive actual mail, but no one seems to want to take the time and thought to doing it. I'm with you on that one. I have given many a gift and never received any acknowledgement of thanks. It is disappointing. If someone can take time from their busy life (face it, we are all busy) and to make or send a special something, then they are saying "you are special to me". The very least we can do is to send a note to show you care too. I am a continental knitter, it is actually the fastest knitting method and to do the English way of knitting makes me all thumbs. I lose my tension and my work would look awful, but I am in awe over the English knitter and her skill. Teresa, rocking that precious baby would have been so much more fun than having your yarn. She is a doll baby, and if you are like me, I have always loved dolls. You are so fortunate to have so many friends close by. Mine are all spread out and so busy anymore. No one has the time for anyone and it gets to feeling like you are imposing on their time. I spend a lot of time to myself, and finding that the best and faithful friends are right here at my fingertips........love you friend, love reading your blog. Have a wonderful New Year's Eve and 2014.....I will probably be right here with yarn in hand, watching the ball drop and falling asleep in my chair.
    (((HUGS))) Susanne :)

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  7. My thank you notes wen tout in the mail yesterday. I think you are so right, it is nice to send a hand written note, actually my Mother did teach me that and I have tried to teach my boys that too, but boys are boys and they don't get it. Love seeing you all spend more time together, I am a thrower (with knitting) that is. I have tried it the other way and I just am a klutz at it. I may be slower with my knitting style, but I still get things done.

    We are going out for a really early dinner and will be in before the crazy people are out.

    Hugs to you Teresa,
    Meredith

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  8. I always send out thank you cards. I love stationary and all kinds of ephemera, so I am always on the look out for cards, etc.... I also make my own with my photographs. Your tex-mex meal sounds wonderful to me! Enjoy!

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  9. I need to write a couple thank you notes as well. Today, while we were at Target, doing a quick trip since Phil was with me, I bought a set of 6 new years cards to send out. I was slow with cards this year. Didn't get as many as usual. I knit right handed. It's been awhile and I need to knit something from my little stash. We are staying home aa well on new year's eve. Phil's been working alot so he will be wanting to stay home which is fine by me. Happy 2014, my bloggy friend!!!!

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  10. You inspire me, Teresa! Thank you :) While I have sent many thank you notes in the mail, I have resorted to email or just verbal thanks the older I get. ( My typing is easier to read than my handwriting :)
    Your post about hand-writing Christmas cards inspired me to write more notes this year and now this post is encouraging me to express my thanks through some hand-written notes!
    Most New Years Eves have found me falling asleep before the ball drops; but for the last three years I have been invited to play Bunko with a group of folks from church from 7:30 to midnight. It is a lively dice game with frequent shifts from table to table and lots of opportunity for fun and small talk and meeting people.
    I am looking forward to swimming Monday!!! Good for you for swimming Friday, and thanks for visiting here before you did! Love, Gracie xx

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  11. Hi Teresa. lovely pics. You looked so relaxed and having a wonderful time. I do send out handwritten notes and love to receive them as well. Old fashioned but so nice.
    Rosezeeta.

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  12. Oh my friend...I so so agree with you on the thank you notes...I love snail mail and use it often. I grew up always having to write thank you notes to all my relatives at Christmas, Birthdays, etc. My mother taught me well....I made my children write thank you notes and they still do to this day. Being grateful is so important.
    Thank you for being such a faithful friend to me over the years....wishing you oodles of blessing for a wonderful New Years. xoxo

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  13. I try to always send thank you notes to people for gifts and nice things people do. I'm not sure where I learned it either but I think it's a great thing to do. So few people do it. It's so rare that I ever get one but it means so much when I do. I hope it means a lot to the people who receive mine. :-)

    Your knit gathering sounds like fun. I'm a thrower. I've tried to knit continental and it works but I'm so much faster doing it the way I always have. How fun that you got to hold the baby!

    Not sure yet what we'll be doing for New Years Eve. We'll probably stay home and cook something yummy and watch a movie and some TV until midnight. OR We might pack up the trailer and head to the desert for a few days.

    Happy New Year to you too! :-D

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  14. I love a thank you note. A real note, and an email, a text or a tweet. I Love a thanks

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  15. I love your handwritten notes Teresa. I also enjoy sending thank you's and other notes from time to time. I so enjoyed our times together last week. Little Rose was certainly a precious bundle to cuddle with wasn't she?
    Hubby and I paln a similar evening on New Years Eve. He has requested chicken enchiladas for dinner and then we'll watch the festivities on TV. Much safer than driving around.
    Blessings,
    Betsy

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  16. Teresa, I love that you write a note by hand. I too, always write a thank you. I was taught to as a child, but I have never stopped. And I taught my children to do the same, and they do, gladly. Not Drew....boys are hard!!! But I not only love to write a hand written note, I love to receive one as well.
    I love your large clipboard for your writing! And I wish I had beautiful penmanship like you too!
    Gracie's home does seem like such a cozy, and warm place to gather. I so wish I could join you. Baby Rose is precious!!
    xo Kris

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  17. I do write thank you notes but I also like to call people and thank them that way. That way we can have a nice chit chat too. I'm a continental knitter for the most part. Except when doing twined knitting. The gardener and I will be dining in this New Years Eve. With the 20 below zero temperatures outside, we are staying close to the fire place and dining in on crusted wild salmon with honey mustard sauce, baked potato, steamed garden green beans and watching the ball drop while sipping on sparking cider. You know I'll be crocheting on that new soft blanket I've got going too. We usually leave wild and crazy to everyone else on New Years Eve. ;-)

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  18. My dear friend Teresa I think it's wonderful you write your notes... Thanks yous and Christmas.i hope someday I have the time to do the same. It was great to see you at Gracie. Have a wonderful calm and peaceful New Year " lots of loc
    Ve

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  19. Just catching up with blogs, really enjoyed sharing some of your Christmas with you. I write thank you notes and so do my daughters. As for crackers, how lovely to see such a silly tradition making its way to you!

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  20. Hi Teresa, It's wonderful to see there are still people writing Thank You notes!!! I started making my own after our stationery shops stopped stocking these little cards!!! I think they are so important!!! We also stay at home on NYE and usually we go to bed quite early too!!! But on New Years Day we usually have friends around for a BBQ and celebration!!!! Hope you have a fab day!!!
    Love
    AMarie

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  21. I heard all about that get-together from Meredith! I know that she'd like to slip away, travel to your part of the country and hang out with all of you.
    I wrote a thank you note the other day, the first one in a long time! I'm a terrible letter writer. Really, it's one of my failings.
    xo
    Claudia

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  22. It seems as if the days of notes and cards are coming to an end. We only received 4 cards this year and I remember when the kitchen wall would be covered w/them! I too do love a phone call, but cards are the best. I am an English knitter even though I can knit continental, I have to really work at it to keep my tension ok. I've just never been able to make the switch over! Happy New Year!

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  23. Hi Teresa, I found your blog through Mias Landliv. I took a few minutes to view your page and I love it. I am so excited to start the new year with you. Happy New Year and here's to seeing you in 2014. Della from Mesa AZ

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  24. Continental knitting for me! My sister taught me that method years ago, and it makes so much sense to me - you can just scoop the yarn with the hook.

    Lucky you to get to go to Gracie's and hold baby Rose! :)

    I know what you mean about writing by hand - it is a lost art. I get hand cramp too if I write too much - plus my writing gets all wobbly and inconsistent. I'm afraid I tend to send electronic thanks rather than paper ones....

    Thanks so much for visiting my blog - I have seen you around various Comments sections so it's very nice to "meet" you. :)

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