I often say I was born in the wrong era. I prefer men to be gentlemanly, and hold open doors for me, pull back my chair, walk on the road-side of the sidewalk; pretty much the opposite of what a modern woman is supposed to want. I have no problem working, but I would much rather stay home, keeping up the house, baking and cooking, and raising my son. I also LOVE to be crafty and make the things I need around the house.

A few years ago, I started crocheting regularly again. One of my girlfriends and I would meet every other weekend at a Starbucks or Panera and just crochet and talk for 4 hours or so. It was great to spend the time, focused time, getting to know each other better, and working on whatever project was next on the list. I learned how to read a crochet pattern, how to do the “magic circle,” and so many stitches! What I thought was a single crochet turns out to actually be a slip stitch – no wonder my crocheting before then took so long and just didn’t look that great; don’t get me started on how the ends of my rows looked just horrible.

I made a gorgeous floppy sun hat and then a ton of chunky, floppy beanies for the family for Christmas that first fall. I then set my sights on a blanket. It ended up being a small lap blanket, that I originally used to sit on my pleather truck seats, and it is now covering the driver seat of my Escape. Once I made that, I know I could make anything. Fast forward several years, and I’ve made about a dozen or so baby blankets (mostly the same pattern, just different variations on the colours), slippers, numerous hats, and several dozen dish cloths. I love knowing that I have this skill to make the things I need at home. I have not yet made a scarf, or a large blanket, but those are on my list. I’m actually looking over patterns to decide on one to make for Little Man for his new toddler bed Granpa and I designed, and should be finishing next week. (I still have that baby blanket for my cousin to finish – it’s a slow but steady project that is over half done now).

I am also decent with a sewing machine – I helped make Little Man’s christening gown last summer, with my mother, out of her wedding gown. This weekend, I’m going to start working on Little Man’s Hallowe’en costume – he’s going to be an adorable little ghost. I picked up a white sheet on clearance at WalMart, and will be just doing a quick fix to make it into the ghost. I would love to start doing more sewing projects; I’ve made several drool/suck pads for the Ergo baby carrier for when Little Man is teething and just drooling everywhere, so the drool goes onto the flannel pads instead of the carrier. The pads are great, because you just pull them off and toss them in the wash, instead of washing the whole carrier.

I helped my FIL make the baby gate for the top of the stairs – another design collaboration with some assistance from me in the actual physical labour. For the toddler bed, I found a design I really like, but just didn’t want to fork over $170 for, so we researched dimensions and have re-created the design. Squatch and my FIL have done the majority of the work on the bed, with me being called in for some design consultations and finish solutions (we’re just going to do a clear coat of poly to bring out the natural wood colours of the pine and ash the bed is made out of).

In the kitchen, I love to cook and bake (I bake better than I cook, but I am working on that). I like being able to provide food for my family, and it is such a stress reliever to smell that yeast working in the bread dough, or using the rolling pin to roll out the dough, etc. Seeing yourself take these various ingredients and combine them to create a delicious smelling and tasting dish is so fulfilling. It also lets me know that no matter what, I can feel my family.

These are all skills that a lot of people consider old-fashioned. Why knit, crochet, or sew when you can just run to the store and buy clothes, socks, blankets, etc. The same goes for building furniture and working in the kitchen. Granted, there are a ton of people out there using subscription boxes like Blue Apron that arrive with the ingredients and a recipe, so yes, they are cooking or baking in their own kitchens, but that is mostly taken care of for them by someone else. These skills can be applied elsewhere, and you never know when you will need them.