Follow & Win!

A few days ago, I posted about my little contest, "Ready, Set, Follow", about following on my blog. Just wanted to let you know that there is still time to get a sweet gift card to Hobby Lobby and a women's Autism T-shirt! Let's see who will win these goodies!

Just a reminder - here are the RULES

Rules....

1. Comment on my earlier post, "Ready, Set, Follow" that you are a new follower.
2. Let me know who sent ya!

Only comments on the "Ready, Set, Follow" post will be counted.

Let the bidding begin!

Mother's Day and graduations are just around the corner. Stop by 8 Little Monkeys Facebook page to get a jump start on your shopping by participating in the Auction for Isaiah.

As I mentioned to you all, I have a darling friend who is in need of some love & support. I have set up an online auction for the Biel Family on my Facebook page. There are some awesome goodies on there!

The auction is scheduled for Friday, April 20th through Monday, April 23rd. Winners will be announced on Tuesday April 24th. This auction is to help his loving family with the costs associated with brain surgery that are not covered by health insurance (food, travel, hotel for the family, child care for siblings, etc).

To make a monetary donation directly to the family, please visit the family's page on ChipIn.com.  Winners will be announced on April.

Happy Bidding!

Ready, Set, Follow....

In honor of my first year, I would like to thank my fans and friends for all their support. As a thank you I would like to offer a $10 gift certificate to Hobby Lobby and a women's size large Autism t-shirt to the fan that brings me the most blog followers by 11:59pm on Tuesday April 24th. The winner will be announced on Wednesday April 25th.

Rules....

1. Comment below that you are a new follower.
2. Let me know who sent ya!

Only comments on this post will be counted.

Thanks so much! Ready...set....refer & FOLLOW!!

Happy Birthday!

So the other day, I was packing up an order and I noticed that my stash of business cards was getting kind of low. Then, I went to my stash of yarn and I realized that has taken over my bedroom. It wasn't until I logged into my Etsy shop that I noticed that 8 Little Monkeys is a year old!

Wow! Where has the time gone? It has been a busy busy year for all 8 little monkeys. It has been an especially busy year for this mama monkey! I have met some amazing folks on this journey in the past year and I have loved every busy minute. I want to thank you all SO very much for your support and I look forward to many many more fantastic years!

As if I don't have enough to do...

As if I don't have enough to do, I thought I would add a few more items to my to-do list. This is actually an exercise in becoming organized and lifting up  my spirits a bit. As many of you know, I am a student and a mom to 4 beautiful children and 4 awesome step - kiddos (to be). This week marks the end of my summer quarter and one full year of school! Woo Hoo! I'm super excited about having one year of school under my belt. One(ish) more year to go and I will finally have my associates degree. This is huge considering all the adversity and challenges I have faced from the first time I stepped foot in a college classroom fresh out of high school. When I say fresh, I mean I had just graduate high school a couple of weeks before jumping into college. (And I won't tell you what year that was...)



Over the past few months, I have been making props for photographers and filling orders (slowly) for customers, and every time I sit down with my hooks and yarn, my girls ask me, "are you making a hat for me"? So when Scotti from the Inner Hooker shop posted on her Facebook page a crochet along, I figured it was an excellent opportunity to start on some goodies for my girls while keeping me on track! Well, at least one of them will have something special.



Another little project, is to highlight fellow crafters and mommy-preneurs (and a few dads too) that have been inspirational to 8 Little Monkeys. A few months ago I highlighted Crochet My Love Designs,  (I love reading that post!), and I think it's time that I spread the love to all the folks I have met on this journey. I am surrounded by some wonderful folks who have great talent. Through their work and their words, they have kept me going. I hope that you will all join me as I celebrate other talented artists and parents.

Many of you know, that I am the mother of two children with Autism. The past few months have been a bit of a challenge for our family for a number of reasons. I will be sharing more about my journey, struggles and triumphs with autism in some future posts as well.

 There are a few more things "cooking" that I will share once things develop!

Free Pattern Friday!

Hi Friends!

Life on this end has been super crazy! School for myself, preparing special needs plans (summer programs and school year) for my little monkeys with autism, and graduation for our oldest monkey has been keeping us on our toes. Things should be slowing down for the 8 Little Monkeys and I so I'll be able to update a little more frequently.

With the holiday weekend coming up, I'm sure many of you will be busy soaking up the sun and celebrating our wonderful nation's independence! Thank goodness for all the men and women who have made so many sacrifices to defend and protect us so that we have the freedoms that we enjoy today!

Speaking of freedom, our youngest little monkey, Audrey, has LOVED prancing around the house when watching one of my favorite shows, So You Think You Can Dance. Watching her reminds me so much of myself when I was a little. You know, a time when something you love gives you the freedom to do, say, and be whoever you want to be! Audrey is only 4, but man, that girl has some raw talent! (ok, so I'm a little biased) I wanted to give Audrey the gift of freedom that my family gave me - so I enrolled her in dance classes. She starts in a few weeks and I think I'm more excited than her. Aah, the joys of motherhood - getting to live vicariously through your kiddos.

In preparation for dance class, we have been discussing what ballerinas wear to class and how they fix their hair. As a surprise for Audrey's first day of ballet, I plan on giving her a special ballerina hair piece. I have to admit, a bun might be a struggle, so we have to do something special to encourage her. While searching for a cute bun cover, I came across this wonderful pattern by Teresa Richardson aka Crochet Geek.

Ballet Bun Cover

Those of you who might have some quiet time inside, or maybe celebrating the freedom to crochet whenever and wherever you like you might try this out. I hope you all enjoy!

Wishing you all a safe & happy holiday!
Meredith