December Monthly Goals - Knitting

Last month, I wrote about my monthly goals as a way of sharing with you what I was up to and keeping myself accountable. Last months goals were all about striving to be more organised and productive. As the mother of a newborn baby, it has been a struggle to get things done, understandably. But I felt that I should start to get back on track and begin to organise myself better in order to be more productive.

Last month's goals

To be honest, I have found it quite difficult to get into a good routine and be more organised. Perhaps I was being too optimistic and trying to get back to normal too soon. I have definitely noticed myself getting more organised as the month has gone on, but I have still not reached the productivity level I would have liked. Therefore, I am going to be carrying on with my organisation and productivity goals this coming month too. One resource I have started using and will continue to use is the Productivity Journal from Ayeina. It is a very thorough journal that allows you to look at yourself, your life and your relationships in depth and encourages you to become more productive.

Knitting

Now to move on to this month's goals. My main goal for the month of December is knitting. There is something about the cold weather which makes me want to knit lots of cosy things to wear. I have always been a very creative person and enjoy a variety of arts and crafts. Knitting is one of my favourites and I enjoy curling up on the sofa with my knitting while listening to a documentary in the background.

How I learnt to knit

I started knitting properly when I was pregnant with my first baby. I decided I wanted to learn to knit some baby bootees so I asked my mum to teach me to knit. Although I had learnt the basics of knitting when I was a child, I had never followed a pattern before. I was pleased to discover that it really was not too hard. Once you get the hang of the two basic stitches - knit and purl - the rest is easy. I quickly caught the knitting bug and once I has finished the baby bootees I went on to knit baby cardigans. Since then, I have enjoyed knitting clothing for my children. The best thing about knitting children's clothes is they do not use too much wool or take too long as they are small. A baby cardigan can be knitted in a week if you have the time.

Why Knit

Custom, cosy clothing

There are many reasons you should knit, the obvious one being you will be able to make wonderful clothing for your family and friends. This clothing will be unique. You will not find anyone else wearing the same thing when you are out and about and you can make it to your exact requirements. 

Relaxing

Knitting also has some surprising health benefits. The rhythmic and repetitive motion of knitting is very relaxing and has the same effects on your mind and body as meditation. Therefore, it can be highly beneficial for those who are struggling with stress or anxiety as the relaxing nature of knitting can help to alleviate the negative symptoms of these conditions.

Motor benefits

Knitting is a great way to exercise your upper limbs and improve your fine motor skills. The movements you make when knitting can also help to prevent arthritis and tendinitis.

Cognitive benefits

Knitting is an activity which stimulates the whole brain. The frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, temporal lobe and cerebellum are all being used when we knit. It keeps the brain active and this slows down cognitive decline meaning that those who knit are up to 50% less likely to have cognitive impairments! Knitting also improves concentration by giving you something to focus on and bringing your attention to the present moment. This is something which, I believe, is particularly beneficial in the digital age.

Finish works in progress

I have a number of knitting projects I would love to begin knitting but first I must finish my WIPs (works in progress). I have a few cardigans I began knitting for myself a year or two ago that I really need to finish. I often make clothing for the children but rarely for myself so I would love to finally finish some of my own.

Knitting projects

After I finish some of my WIPs I have a long list of new projects. I need to make some cardigans for my 8 week old daughter. I love a knitted cardi on babies. Not only do they look lovely, I actually think they are much warmer and cosier than a lot of the cardigans you can find in shops. Baby clothing is my favourite thing to knit as it's so quick!

Ravelry is an amazing website I use for searching for patterns and keeping note of my latest projects and favourite patterns. You can search through thousands of knitting or crochet patterns and many of them are free of charge. Once you find a pattern you like you can download it and print it off. You can also use this website to search for yarns and connect to other knitters.

I hope you enjoyed reading about this months goals. Have you thought about your monthly goals yet? Are you a knitter? If not, perhaps you will feel inspired to learn. There are many tutorials on YouTube that can help you get started.

Welcome to the Monthly Goals link up! Do you plan your month ahead? Have you anything in particular that your looking forward to this month? Is there anything in your life that needs
focus? Kids, family, self... what is your motivation? This blog hop and link up is to help you
make new friends and find a partner to stay accountable to. Every month, a group of us get together to write our monthly goals. This helps us stay connected, accountable as well as
inspire other moms to know how we do it all.

You are welcome to join us by leaving a comment telling us about your goal. If you are a

blogger and interested in joining, leave me a message and we'll send you an invite! Visit the

other participants to seek some inspiration or just give them some support. This month the participating blogs are:

Learning to accept failure and disability + monthly goals - Jeddah Mom

Let's plan and work for a productive living - Alizeh My Soul

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