Blogging From A to Z Challenge: K is for Knitting

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a great Easter—even if it was probably not your usual way to celebrate the holidays. My family had a virtual gathering—about ten of us on a Zoom call, eating ham, Grandma's famous potatoes, and a bunch of veggies. And of course, there was an egg hunt. So much chocolate!

I didn't write a blog yesterday, because the Blogging From A to Z Challenge takes a break every Sunday, but I'm ready to kick off this week with the letter "K." Oh, in case you missed it, my theme this year is 26 Super Fun Learning Activities You Can Do From Home. That's right, I'm conjuring up 26 "educational" ideas to keep you busy while you're safe at home. But don't get too hung up on the word "educational"—so far, they've all be fun activities. Am I wrong?

Just to recap, I kicked off the challenge with Art for the letter A. Next up was B was for Baking. My sister and I did some chemistry for the letter "C," and I rounded off the first week with a family dance off. "E" was for exercise (which was way more fun than you think) and "F" was all about family. We did some gardening for "G," celebrated Poetry Month and the letter "H" by writing haikus. And of course, I was for Invention. Week two ended with juggling. How did that go for you? I didn't break anything, but Mom says she's ready for us to "move on" from "J." So, here we go....

K is for Knitting 

Before we sat down to dinner last night, Mom and Grandma did a food exchange—Mom left a Lemon Cake on Grandma's doorstep, and brought home a bag Grandma had left for us. Her delicious potatoes were part of it, but there was something else in the bag too—two sets of knitting needles, and a bunch of yarn.

At first I was confused—Mom doesn't knit. Grandma does though, and my sister and I have received a number of knitted sweaters and scarves over the years. She loves to knit. So why would she give us her yarn?

Turns out, Amelia and I are learning to knit today—on a Zoom call with Grandma. I tried to hide it, but I'm sure my face scrunched up with confusion. Knitting? How is that fun? Or educational?

But then Mom showed me a couple of patterns Grandma is going to show us how to knit and the "fun" part became clear. Butterflies for Amelia (the junior entomologist) and PUMPKINS for me. (If you've been following my blog, you know I love all things Halloween.)

But what about the educational part?

Mom says "knitting" is a life skill—even if we hardly use it—and it teaches us focus and concentration (here we go with those words again.) But apparently it also helps with counting and math, and also, how to cope with frustration. I get the feeling it might not be as easy as it looks. Luckily, Grandma has a lot of patience with us.

Want to learn too knit but you don't have anyone to teach you? Check out YouTube for a bunch of great tutorials, including this one.

Gotta jet! Don't forget to check back tomorrow for the letter "L." Until then...happy knitting!

~ Chase Superman Duffy