Wow. I haven't been here in so long. And I think about it all the time. I actually have done tons of knitting lately - even finished the Must Have Cardigan (and wore it) and finished a Diamond Fantasy Lace shawl for a gift (awaiting blocking) and assorted other small things (like multiple pairs of Mrs. Beetons). But, alas, things have been crazy busy and I've had to pick and choose my time. I bet I'm not even on your blogroll anymore. I am really missing blogging, and I'm hoping to come back full-force in the new year with a modified blog - something that's not just knitting -- something that's more true to Threaded Thoughts in scope - and something that fits in with where I'm at right now as a creative type... The Creative Mom Podcast has given new life and vitality and zest to parts of me that I hadn't even realized I'd lost touch with. A new blog is in order, and it's coming. Whether or not it appears at this URL or not, I don't know. I'm still figuring... But, maybe. I lost my threadedthoughts.com domain way back when through one of those aggravating second-hand domain name host problems. So, I've never gotten it back, which really irks me. But, under some name or other, I'm coming back.... soon. And, I hope to meet up again with you then. I don't think I carried over many of my blog pals to the Creative Mom Podcast. I hope to reconnect with you in the blog world.

(Can you tell... the little one finally started pre-school, and I'm awash in the possibilities the extra few hours a week opens up for me! Yes, I need to start doing real work again... and tracking down real work again. But, I'm also giddy with the idea of a few hours. It's been... years...)

Okay, so that's my "I'm still here post." Next up is the, "Can you believe this," post!!!

I just got email from Jessica, a listener of The Creative Mom Podcast. She wrote to tell me that she was listening to the radio and heard a DJ reporting on a segment from ABC News about the top 5 worst Christmas gifts to give … and NUMBER 2 was a HANDMADE SWEATER.

Jessica was surprised, and I am, too. After all, the handknit sweaters worn by Harry Potter and Ron Weasely and made by Mrs. Weasely are so cute and many, many, many of those have been made by knitters over the last few years. And I fully intend for my boys to have them, when they're a tad older...we'll say able to read the book on their own, which may indicate they're not growing quite so quickly.

That a homemade sweater is #2 on the list of worst gifts is only so-so funny. And, in jotting down notes about this for this week's episode of the podcast, I was feeling very tongue in cheek about it. After all, honestly, a handknit sweater is a huge investment in time. If you're going to knit for someone… going smaller is easier on you, and if it ends up being underappreciated, you won't feel so bad. Plus, "fit" isn't such a daunting issue when it's a hat, or a scarf, or socks, or a shawl, or mittens.

But then I tracked down the segment at ABC. It's a video segment, and it even includes this line, "The best gifts are often bought – not knit."

That really got me. And, it spurred me out here right now to post... and I wonder how many blogs this news bit ends up on this week.