HATS, HATS, MORE HATS!

Hello dear friends!

I love hats....I've always loved hats.  I don't wear them so much now, but I used to love to fancy up and wear them to church!  Fortunately, I have never had to be concerned with having enough hats to keep me warm.  I am so thankful that all of my children and grandchildren have all of their most important needs met.  I also love making hats and have enjoyed making them for several charities as well as family and friends.  This is my favorite picture from S. Africa, you have most likely seen me post it more than once!  The pure joy on her face is worth more than any amount of money!!

Every year Wal-Mart put’s all their cold weather hats & gloves on sale, 50% off.  The hats are very inexpensive to start with, so at 50% off they are only 65 cents!  When I noticed this last year I bought 10 or so hats and donated them to a local charity. This year, I went on a mission to get these hats for the orphans in S. Africa.  As you may know, Africa will be coming into their winter as we approach summer.  What you may not know is that the average winter temperature in S. Africa is 39 degrees F (thank you Laurie Fortier for that information!).  People often ask me why making the blankets and hats is so crucial for these children.  Many of us have a preconceived notion that it is always hot in Africa, but clearly that is a misconception.  I’m so thankful that I happened on to this charity, as it has given me such a clear purpose in helping these children.  Knowing that even one child, a continent away, will benefit from my help is an amazing feeling!

When I found the hats on sale at Wal-Mart again, I quickly grabbed up over 30 hats to send to the KAS community.  With this in mind, I would like to challenge each of you to grab a couple hats the next time you are in the Wal-Mart store.  Pick a local charity or shelter and drop them off.  Better yet, invite your friends to do the same and donate them wherever your heart tells you to.  Or, if you would like, you can send them to me and I will forward them on to S. Africa! I know I can’t meet all the needs of these children, but I feel I’m being urged to keep pushing, to get more people involved!   It takes so little to make a huge difference in these children’s lives!  Five hats are less than $3.00, which is the same as a cup of coffee at Starbucks.  I think I can pass up a few designer cups of coffee for the knowledge that I have helped someone stay warm!  (As you can see, I picked up a few other things for them as well!)

I will be tucking a dozen squares into the package with the hats.  Starting with Lent, my goal is one square every day.  By the end of Lent, there will be enough to make a blanket (it takes 35 squares), with a few left over!  I apologize for the quality of this photo, I was having issues.....

I am also working on how to monetize my blog.  I hope that when I have added that piece, you will come back and help me spread the word!  Everything earned will be used for sending these items to S. Africa.

For all the gorgeous women in my life, I would like to share Kitty's Fiber Journey with you; her blog today features an incredible YouTube video.  http://www.kittysfiberjourney.com/  .  There is also a button above, to the right of my post, that you can use to get to her blog.  Please do watch it and I hope you will share it with the girls and women in your life!  It would mean so much to me!
(After watching, scroll down and read her earlier posts regarding KAS.....Laurie has blessed me by including my blog in an earlier post as well!)

I wish everyone a warm and joyful weekend!
Hugs to all,
In fellowship,
~Mary Anne

Blueberry in Raspberry sauce...its tootyfrooty with a little lace!!

Hello dear friends!  In my last post I mentioned that I would be posting some pictures of the crocheted squares, which I will be mailing to KAS (http://www.knit-a-square.com/) tomorrow!  I have been SO busy crocheting away and then making cards in between my crocheted squares!

I have also become involved in the KAS Forum and what fun that has been!  Meeting ladies all over the world, who are knitting and crocheting for the children in South Africa.  It has been so energizing and I feel like I have a whole new set of friends to share ideas with!  If you are a crafter or an artist, you know we tend to get so involved in our craft sometimes, that we forget to take time to interact with others.  I am probably even more inclined to not get out and socialize, due to my physical  limitations.  (it isn't that I'm unable to go out, it just causes me a lot of pain if I sit for very long ;o).  However, when we do take the time to chat with others of like mind, it is so refreshing and rejuvenating!

Here are a couple pictures of the children in South Africa that I am especially moved by......their smiles are so precious and I want so badly to reach out and hug each and every one of them! The hats and squares that I send are my way of sending a hug across the continents to them :o)......
Look at these smiles!  Wow, they have so little and look at that joy!  We could really learn from them, don't you think?

This little guy is SO serious....what a beautiful child.  I wish I could give him a big hug; I thank God that KAS is there to give him some warmth and make his life a little bit less harsh!

I hope that some of you will be touched by these pictures and perhaps moved to do some small thing or to pass this message along.  As I have mentioned before, there are millions of children who are orphans in South Africa; and whose parents have most likely died from the AIDS epidemic.  Children as young as 4 years old can be seen carrying their baby sibling on their back!  As stated in my new friend Laurie's blog:  There are an estimated 1.9 million AIDS orphans in Sub-Saharan Africa. 500 children a day are made orphans by the combined ravages of AIDS and poverty.

Please take a moment to check out her beautiful blog!  : http://www.kittysfiberjourney.com/2012/01/var-servicedomainwww.html

So, finally, here are a couple photos of what I have been working on!

I have about 16 of these now and I'm actually starting on this month's batch.  In order to motivate us even more, the KAS forum has come up with a monthly incentive for trying out new colors or patterns.  This month is:  French Lace, Frooty Tooty, Fantasy (Fairies, cartoon characters​, wizards, dragons, elves etc)"......LOL, that's quite a list!  I found a neat pattern online through Ravelry and revised it to come up with my "blueberry in rasberry sauce" square!  Ta da!

It's definitely lacy and not as solid as I normally make them.  I learned through the forum that they like to have one really fun square to put in each blanket, so one lacy square won't make a difference in the warmth.  I''m crocheting several more in my favorite pattern (the one I used on previous photo).  I will probably do a couple more in my "blueberry" motif ;o).  By the way, if you knit or crochet, there are several pretty squares (with free patterns) on the site where I found this pattern:  http://dayna.tdgservices.com/Patterns.aspx.

Some of you may be wondering, if you don't knit or crochet, how you can help.  If you go to the KAS website, you can donate any amount or pledge any amount that you might feel comfortable with;  http://www.knit-a-square.com/knit-a-square-donate.html.  Even $5.00 a month can make a huge difference in a child's life!

In addition, I discovered that they are in constant need of socks!  So I'm planning to add some socks to my packages every month!  Would you like to help me with that?  You could send socks to me to add to my packages, which would be much cheaper than you mailing them to South Africa.  I will then cover the postage of getting them there.  The other option, of course, is that you can mail socks directly to KAS and they will be more than happy to put them to good use!!  Postal instructions are here:  http://www.knit-a-square.com/postal.html

So please, take the time to check out this organization and think about some small way you might help!  http://www.knit-a-square.com/

Lastly, I would ask that you keep all the wonderful volunteers who give so much of themselves and all of the children that are cold, hurting, hungry and/or orphaned in your prayers!

In love and fellowship,

~Mary Anne