Harder Than I Thought

 

I have finished 3 sweaters so far this year, and each one has been hard in different ways. When I started this sweater, I knew the colorwork would be hard, but I figured the rest would be fairly easy. At least I wouldn't have to seem it together. Right? I was wrong. 

I have gotten to the part where I add the color to create Hermione's time turner. It was not easy to get here. At first, I struggled with learning German short rows. With some help from YouTube, I got that figured out and only had take out that part to redo it once. As I was doing this part, I also ran into an issue with the pattern not making sense, so I found a project page on Ravelry that rewrote the two lines that were written poorly. Then, I had a counting issue (it's hard to not lose count with that many stitches while making increases). I used stitch counters ever 10 to 15 stitches depending on the row to help with that. The problem with this part was the first increase row did not have the stitches to match what was written. I got that part figured out and continued on. Now, I am adding the colored pattern and fighting my own counting issues again. Why is it that counting while crafting is so much harder than counting in every day life?

I will do more updates on the progress of this sweater like I did for the mittens a while back. I'm quite excited to make it! I hope it comes out as beautiful and fun as I imagined when I ordered the yarn. 

Struggling is Okay

When I was growing up, I was lead to believe that I would have very little struggles if I were to be faithful. I understand where this advice was coming from, but it is dangerous advice and not true. There were time in my life when I felt on top of the world spiritually, doing my very best to do what was right, but my world came crashing down on me anyway. 

Life is not easy no matter who you are and what path you choose to follow. There was a talk during this last conference that addressed this very issue. (I don’t remember who was speaking or if it was from the Sunday morning or afternoon session.) When we struggle, we are not alone. Jesus Christ suffered all, and we can draw on His strength when we need it the most. He is there to comfort us when times are hard. 

Does this mean everything will get better just by praying, reading scriptures, and going to church? No. We have been given access to get help when it is needed. There is no reason to be ashamed of reaching out to a professional or taking medication for these struggles. My mom did it, and I’m glad she did. I’ve done it from time to time and should probably do it more often. When we use these tools in combination with being faithful to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, we can be made whole. 

“…peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment;

And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes.

Thy friends do stand by thee, and they shall hail thee again with warm hearts and friendly hands.”

Doctrine and Covenants 121:7-9

My Morning

 I’m going to start off by pointing out that we have one working car for our family. Since Chad has a work truck for only work purposes, we have been able to get by with only a few inconveniences for most of our marriage. The exception is times like this. 

Have we tried to get another car? Yes. Chad’s moms got him a 2005 Civic in 2018 that we had for almost two years before it died. Then, we bought a Yukon in 2021, but it has not ran right for more than a week at a time and the mechanics at the dealership can’t figure out what is wrong. We have horrible luck with cars. 

That brings me to today. I was on my way to a 5K this morning, and the tie rod broke as I was leaving the neighborhood. The rest of the day has been filled with finding a tow truck, calling a mechanic, and setting up a rental car. It has been a nightmare of a morning. I just hope the repair isn’t too pricey.

I think Chad and I will be doing Door Dash again so we can get another car.