Dear Blog

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On this day in 2004, I wrote the first entry here.  My darling friend Ken made it for me, and it goes without saying that it was one of the most incredible gifts I’ve ever received.  Today marks my 8th Blogiversary – eight years of having this in my life, and eight years of our family considering all of you, collectively "The Blog".  We’ve never talked like The Blog is the part I write.  We talk about it like its you.  We say things like "What does The Blog think?" or "The Blog isn’t going to like this" or "I can’t wait to tell The Blog".  The Blog is you,  and I wanted to take a minute to tell you that this experience has changed my life, taught me things and changed me in ways that I would never have predicted. I have some things I’d like to thank you for, my dear little blog.

For making me a better writer.  I know not all writers agree, but for me, the nature of my relationship with The Blog has been a pretty big pile of awesome.  I feel like eight years of immediate feedback has changed the way I think and helped me learn to write what I mean to say.  Eight years of seeing immediately when I’m being understood by The Blog and when I’ve failed miserably has (I think) helped me to land where I want to be more of the time.  Thank you.

For supporting my career. Very early on, when I had my first book deal and was just starting this blog – but no book had been published, I was agonizing about what might happen if I wrote a book and it had abysmal sales.  I lay awake at night thinking about how terrible it would be, how embarrassing, how humiliating it would be to fail at this. What if, I mused to someone, what if I wrote a book and NOBODY bought it?  They said to me that at least they would buy it, and my other friends too.  "Your friends are pretty likely to buy your book" she said.   I sat there hoping I had enough friends.  Turns out I had no idea. I was about to have The Blog.  Thank you.

For teaching me a lot about technology.  When I started doing this, I had no idea what I was doing. With anything.  I’m not saying that I’m a total computer whiz now, but I can write basic HTML, solve minor tech issues, have a minimum understanding of what a server does, can use a digital camera pretty well, can use a whole lot of different software, and stay pretty current with all of it out of necessity.  A few days ago I taught someone how to export a jpeg in a way that helped them serve their Blog, and I don’t think I would have ever thought of myself as someone who had anything like that to offer. Thank you.

For bringing some of the best people I’ve ever met into my everyday life. Every so often The Blog has given birth to someone who has gone on to have a life outside The Blog and in my kitchen, inbox, or on the other end of the phone. Thank you.

For teaching me that not all knitters are nice, and that The Blog is diverse.  Just like there is a certain percentage of every population that is mentally ill in a way that is dangerous to themselves and others, the same can be true of The Blog. Just like there are some people who would hurt me in my real world, there are people in our virtual world who would do the same – and virtual people are real people capable of manifesting in real ways.  I know – that seems like a bizarre thing to be grateful for, but I don’t think I really understood.  I’ve learned to be careful and thoughtful, but not afraid… and I am safer now, and so is my family. Thank you.

For giving me a social safety net almost everywhere I go. The Blog has given me directions, food, beer, help, company and advice when I’ve been on the road, and that has made a difference so many times.  I’m so grateful for what it has meant to have all of you with me virtually, and sometimes literally. Once The Blog turned out to be a doctor once helped me when I was sick and far from home.  Once The Blog was a pharmacist, another time, a lawyer. Once The Blog showed up with a car and rescued me from a situation that was possibly dangerous and definitely scary, and The Blog once scooped me out of the wrong airport in an antiquated Honda, and got me to the right airport after I got my states mixed up and wasn’t going to make it home in time for something important. Once The Blog knew without being told, that I was having one of the worst days of my life, and mystically knew to send me an email that said exactly the right thing.  Once The Blog sent me thousands of messages of comfort when my friend died.  The Blog wished us well after our wedding day. The Blog is powerful, and real and I cannot tell you how many times you have helped me in a thousand big and little ways. From knowing the best vegetarian restaurant in Austin to having a phone number for a knitter/dentist in Australia,  having The Blog everywhere is amazing.  Thank you.

Finally, for giving me a world much bigger and wider than my own could ever  be without you, and your multitude of perspectives and thoughts.  Dear Blog, you mean the world to me.

Thank you for the last eight years. I love you.

704 thoughts on “Dear Blog”

  5. Hello Stephanie;
    From someone who has been reading you faithfully for a couple of years,in more of a lurking mode than anything else, I have always been pleased to be a member of the bloguniverse.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Carolyn

  6. Happy blogiversary and, as you’ve said so well over the years, even when we sometimes disagree about the details, we are all united in knitting. 🙂

  8. We love you, too! And thank you for bringing us so graciously into your life these past 8 years. It’s been lovely knowing you!

  10. Happy Blogiversary! i don’t think I’ve ever posted, but I read your blog and laugh and at times, cry (when appropriate). I’m happy I found you years ago. My knitting and stash have grown because of you:)

  11. Happy Anniversary, Stephanie! You have brought joy to my world and much knitting inspiration! I get a smile on my face each time I see that you’ve posted a new entry. Thank you for sharing your life with all of us!

  13. We love you too. I’m relatively new here for commenting, but I’ve been reading off an on for years.
    Thank you for sharing your thoughts, your creations, and your life & family with us.
    Here’s to another 8 years!

  14. I was just commenting to my hubby last weekend how awesome it’s been to follow the ups and downs. New businesses, new books, grown up kids, new sound studio. Thanks for sharing. Oh yeah and thanks for knitting.

  15. oh we love you too
    happy blogiversary!
    I make all your soups…next book… “From Soup to Socks” ????
    have enjoyed being the Blog from the beginning.

  16. Happy Blogiversary!!!
    I started reading your blog in Oct 2004, the month after I resumed knitted after a decades-long hiatus.
    I appreciate your sense of humor (I have laughed so hard that I cried more than once), your knitting skill combined with a willingness to allow less than perfect results. Today, I allowed myself to leave a reverse stockinette i cord graft after thinking “you can NOT see the slight wonkiness while galloping by on a horse -so no redo”.
    I appreciate your sharing your life with us.
    Thanks
    minm

  17. And once again, when I/we come to say Happy Blogiversary, you’re the one who has made us happy first. Much love to a much-loving person and thank you for being an example of compassion and graciousness to the whole world as well as the knitting world.

  20. Better the blog than the borg! I’ve enjoyed reading what you’ve had to say, and I have to say, you’ve made my world bigger by making the world smaller. (c: Happy anniversary!

  21. Happy Blogiversery. You deserve every bit of happiness that comes your way. And thank you for sharing the Yarn Harlot with all of us.
    Lil

  22. Right back at’cha Stephanie…we’ve never met… yet somehow I feel like we are friends…here’s to many more years….H-A-P-P-Y blogging!!!!…(:

  27. Happy 8 years to you! I’ve only been around since 2005, when I started knitting, but I’ve read all your archives. Thanks for all you do!

  31. The irony that today would be your 8th anniversary. I just read your first post this morning. You see, my friend Rick and I are starting a blog and since I really enjoy yours, I decided to see where it all began. We don’t have our first post up yet, but we should soon. We’re just a couple of friends who met over a TV show and discovered we both enjoy TV with a side of yarny/crafty stuff.
    Congratulations on 8 years. I enjoy your blog, your books, and I’ve been dying for the Cloisoneé pattern to be available. I’m glad, however, it wasn’t out before Christmas. I would have been in sooooo much trouble.

  32. And thank you! I come here daily to see what’s going on. What you may not know is that when I am having a straight up crap day, I go to the archives and pick a month. It’s an escape and a comfort in more ways than you can imagine but mostly, it’s a chance to step back in time, reground myself and breath in and out and then go back to real life renewed. And I thank you very very much for that.

  34. I wasn’t here when you began blogging; but, now, a faithful reader. Your posts enlighten my day and make me feel like we know each other.
    Congratulations on 8 great years and wishes for many more.

  35. Happy Blogoversary – and THANK YOU for all the wonderful reading for the past 8 years!! xo

  36. I couldn’t imagine a world without you in it, Steph. You’ve made me smile and laugh when I didn’t think it was possible, and you taught me how to knit a sock. (To which I am now addicted!) Thank you for everything and I love you, too. xx

  38. Thank YOU!! I’m not exaggerating when I say that you and The Blog have changed and enriched my life. And I am ever so grateful!
    Happy Blogiversary!

  39. Happy Anniversary from a faithful lurker. I love reading your life, your teaching, your friends, and (again) your life. My husband loves having me read your posts to him, as well. And he is NOT fiber related (unless you consider that being related to me would count). Keep up the good work.

  40. The Blog loves you back! Happy Blogiversary and thank you for validating the knit-life! Thanks for sharing your knitting and your work and your family with all of us. I so look forward to my ritual of checking The Blog to see what’s up–it makes a good day better and a bad day bearable.

  41. Happy Blogiversary to you! You have enlightened and entertained me from the beginning. You’ve taught me about knitting and life in Canada. Thanks for letting The Blog into your life.
    P.S. I feel the same way you do about babies.

  42. I’ve been reading for years, but hardly ever comment….the feeling is mutual! We love you too. Thank you for sharing so much of your life with us, and always being good for a laugh or some excellent food for thought. You’re a wise woman – in knitting and in everything else too (you know, babies, politics, all the important stuff)….Happy Blogiversary, here’s to many more!

  43. I’m your #1 fan! It’s good that you don’t live in this country, or I might turn into a scary stalker… I feel like we’re friends in my head…
    Congrats on your anniversary!

  44. Stephanie, I’m so glad that you do this blog and your books. You have a great sense of humor and I hope I get to see you in person one day. Congratulations. 🙂

  46. Maybe it’s time for a confession. Stephanie, I don’t knit (well, I have “my knitting,” a monstrous and tangled mess that daunts me every time I pull it out so I put it back again), but I read your blog faithfully, because you are such a darn good writer. You even make me wish I could knit. Thank you for all your wit and wisdom!

  47. Thank you Stephanie! You have been an inspiration to so many (including me) partially because you are so authentic and honest about your life. We love you too!

  48. I’ve spent the past week re-reading the past 8 years of the blog, remembering things I’d forgotten, looking for bits I half-remembered, laughing often at so much, and crying (all over again) at the more raw moments you’ve shared, and most of all, knitting right along with a renewed fervor. All of this is to say, we love you, too. Thank you, thank you so much for being such an amazing voice, such a brilliant woman/mother/artist/human being, such a force to be reckoned with. Your blog – and your books – have made me reconsider what I’m capable of, not just with my knitting (as both ‘craft’ and as art) but with my own voice out here in the world.

  49. You’ve meant so much to us from the first moment we met you, Stephanie, and you always will.

  50. It is wonderful to know that we are as important to you as you are to us. Sometimes I feel like we’re a bunch of needy people wanting our Harlot fix a couple of times a week and I wonder how you deal with the pressure of keeping us happy. I didn’t discover the Blog until 2008. When I need to read something new, I go to the archives. I’m up to 2006 and don’t want to finish up too soon.
    Stephanie, your wisdom and humor and candor are gifts to us all. Through the Blog, we’ve watched your children turn into beautiful young women, admired your strong relationship with your man Joe and seen your career bloom as you’ve turned into a knitteraria. It’s been a pleasure to go through the WIP that is all of us.
    Happy Blogiversary!

  51. I’m so glad I’ve been along with you this trip! I started following about 4 years ago and have been amazed at how this place has grown! Here’s to another 8 years of socks and squirrels and sweaters and swearing. (Mild swearing, Canadian style.)

  52. I’m so glad I’ve been along with you this trip! I started following about 4 years ago and have been amazed at how this place has grown! Here’s to another 8 years of socks and squirrels and sweaters and swearing. (Mild swearing, Canadian style.)

  53. Happy 8th to you- how awesome is that! Just as you refer to us as ‘the Blog’ you are ‘the Harlot’ or sometimes (daringly) ‘Steph’ – and you are quoted, described and adored by all. My husband has even read some of your books when I start laughing like a maniac, and say ‘here, read this, it’s us!’.
    Oftentimes, when I read your blog, we are both doing the same thing, sipping a fresh tea, looking out the window and fondling wool…. you are a bit like an imaginary friend, but you feel like someone who could be real friend, which is quite cool. Cheers!

  55. My favorite post is when you had large holes in your house from the heating vents being replaced and one horrible thing after another happened, and you just had to leave the house and get a beer. I realized one, that I’m not the only person who needs to just leave sometimes and doing so does NOT make me a horrible person (like I thought it did), and two, that it’s okay if an adult/mom goes to the bar and gratefully enjoys a good beer (beer also does NOT make me a horrible person, like I thought). You give me hope for my future.
    Thank you.

  57. I have just recently started reading your blog and I love it. I am so happy I found you and the blog, it has enriched my life. Here is to the next 8 years!!

  58. We love you too! It was The Blog that told me that I should learn how to knit socks. And it was your book “Knitting Rules!” that showed me how. And it was you that gave me Tina and Blue Moon and RSC and Ravelry.
    This blog makes me laugh and cry and hug my family. It supports me when I have to frog and start again and don’t think I can. You have shown us all that WE CAN DO ANYTHING. And that a lot of the crap we allow to bug us is not important at all.
    Keep calm and cast on!
    I raise a glass to The Blog and wish it many more years. Give Ken a hug and a thank you too.

  59. Awesome. And thanks for writing the best blog I read, that I come back to more than any others.

  60. Happy Blogiversary, Steph! And for being a “still small voice” in my world when things were going pear shaped, for making me laugh when few things in a day would, for letting me know that I wasn’t the only knitter in the universe, for reminding me that everyone has to rip back now and then, and for rendering me certain in the knowledge that sometimes in life the only thing you really have control over is your next stitch, thank you so very very much. You’ve no idea how glad I am to have you and your blog to read, and what it’s meant during some dark days and on the good days too. Thank you, Steph – long may you continue with the blog xx

  62. We love you so much, too! Everyone I know knows who you are because of how often I say, “You know, I was reading on YarnHarlot’s blog and Stephanie Pearl-McPhee says…”

  64. Happy Blogiversary Stephanie!! Thank you so much for sharing your life and humor with us!! I hope you know how much you are appreciated and the impact you have on lives!! Blessings, love, Josie

  66. We love you too! And thank you (& Ken & your family & the knit night gang) for laughter, tears, encouragement, thoughtful discussion and just plain fun! Thanks especially for creating a community in this corner of cyber space that feels like home. Happy blogoversary! Knit on! Write on! Cheers!

  67. Thank you so much for sharing your life these last eight years! Your writing has given me much happiness and inspiration.

  68. Congratulations! Your blog is such fun to read, and I hope it will continue for many more years.
    Thanks for the laughter — and for sharing so much of your life with us.

  71. In 2004, October to exact, I searched on the computer to see if there was “anything” about knitting…I know a big “duh” goes here. Your blog popped up. I have been reading ever since. It has opened a zillion doors on knitting and many other subjects. I drove across Boston to see/meet you in Burlington when you came here a few years ago. (You had ‘Kinneared’ that morning at the airport).It has been here for me to read through 9 surgeries,when anything but reading was too painful to do.Should mention the amount of yarn I have acquired too??…blogs have a way of bringing strangers into your life; you become friends in a way. So you have “the blog” at your house and I have “Stephanie” at mine….works both ways! Thank YOU for sharing your life with me…

  72. We love you back. And thanks for getting me started spinning! And sharing the Tsock Tsarina (that vintage sock stuck with me for a long time). And the Knot Hysteria retreat (hope it will be plural one day). And my new vocabulary (I woke up with a cold the other day and my first thought was “I feel like arse”. I did not share that thought with others…before now.) And lots of other things. Happy 8 year blogaversary!

  73. Congratulations !
    I never thought of myself as someone who would be hooked on a blog, even though I have always been hooked on fabric and fibre. You have become a cherished 5 minutes of peaceful space in a crazy life. You are inspiration and validation that none of us need to strive to be perfect or to knit perfectly. Thank you to you and your family for sharing with us.

  74. Right back at you! Yours is one of two blogs I read daily and when I am unable to, a little something is missing from the day. You are an inspiration to me as a writer, knitter, mother and all round good person. Many more blogging years to you!

  75. I have gotten lazy about commenting here; you have so many followers. But I must de-lurk to wish you a Happy Blogiversary. I will never forget that yours was one of the first blogs I discovered in 2005 when I experienced the urge to pick up the needles I dropped when the babies were small. How the knitting world had changed since then, and I started to learn about it here. Thank you for all the pleasure and knwledge that has been added to my life since then!

  77. Thank you for an amazing eight years. I appreciate all of your stories and the long sufferance of your daughters as we have watched them grow. Looking forward to seeing what comes next on your needles!

  78. Thank you! I have been knitting off and on for 40 years and your blog has helped me to be a braver knitter. I tried socks because of it… And love making them for my family. I tried lace and love the challenge of making something so beautiful. I learned to laugh more at myself and my errors in knitting and life. You have an amazing way to say things that “click”even though I’ve heard it before many times in many ways. Again… THANK YOU! And happy blogiversary! “The blog”is blessed to have you!

  79. Steph,
    I remember back when you were posting pee-your-pants funny posts to the knitlist and everyone was saying “You should be a professional writer”. I remember when your girls were little (and it astonishes me to see them now). I remember you announcing your first book (and I made the lady at the B&N a little crazy saying “Is it here yet?”) I’ve never met you in person, and possibly never will, but I’m also sincerely grateful that you write The Blog. (And thanks to Ken for the gift! 🙂
    Happy Blog-versary.

  80. Thank you. If it wasn’t for your blog I wouldn’t feel comfortable having two or three (or four) knitting projects on my coffeetable. I wouldn’t have made my daughter French Press felted slippers (three pairs now. She loves them) And I wouldn’t have attempted to knit a Dale of Norway sweater, a Bohus sweater and at least three other projects. Many still in progress and I’m ok with that.

  81. Thanks! Reading your blog has given me info, inspiration, learning new things, and the best of all you make me laugh.
    So a very happy 8 years.

  82. I’m very happy to be a part of The Blog. And count myself as a lucky part of it, as we have actually met in real life, and you’ve been to my house a few times, and we’ve really had a good time. (well, I did, and I hope you did, but maybe you’re as good an actor as you are a writer.)

  83. Happy Blogiversary!! You bring laughter, joy and learning into my days and I am so happy every time I check and there is a new post!! I love your books and have every one. You are the blessing in our lives and I am so grateful that you, through this BLOG, are in mine. Thank you Stephanie!!!

  85. Happy Bloganniversary!
    You’re my first read every morning, and you make me think about knitting like no other can! THANK YOU ! I wish you many many many more blogging years 🙂

  86. Huzzah! We (and I, of course) all love you, too. Although I still carry guilt for the time you were writing in the woods and wrote that you were going to walk into town for supplies and no one (certainly not me) noted that the distance was a little long, and the trip was not a good one, save for the kindness of locals with a vehicle. It sounds like you’ve forgiven us completely. That makes me happy.
    Thanks for everything!

  88. thanks for the genuine integrity with which you write and even the snorted coffee as I read and laugh over breakfast.

  89. Thank you for opening your life and knitting to me… I feel like we are good friends… Keep up the brilliant writing and beautiful knitting!!’

  90. Congratulations on 8 great years. The knitting world wouldn’t be the same without you, that’s for sure.
    Here’s to 8 x 8 more years!

  92. Thank you! I can’t remember when I discovered your books and blog. Over the years you have given me endless pleasant reads over lunch in a voice that makes it feel as is we were sitting together chatting over coffee, a several hilarious laughs (the squirrel essay brings a smile to my lips whenever I think of it), handy tips and innumerable great ideas for projects and the idea for a prize winning science project. The last came about when my daughter picked up one of your books and read the part about trying to figure out what type of unbanded yarn was in an obviously mislabeled bag by setting fire to a snippet. Who wouldn’t want to light things on fire in teh name of science? Just in case you are curious one result of this experiment was to discover that qiviut disolves in bleach. Breathe easy it was the tiniest of samples.

  93. you are very welcome! now it’s my turn to say thank you: for showing me that i am not alone, that i am not the only knitter who makes mistakes, and for making me laugh.

  94. It’s because you are open to relating to The Blog that it is so in love with you – thanks for being a real person relating to real people.
    Happy anniversary and many, many more years to this magical relationship!

  95. We love you, too! And thanks for giving us a community inside the knitting world–we are Harlot Fans! And that is no small thing. 🙂

  96. THANK YOU! I want to thank YOU for actually blogging. So many blogs are hit or miss – bloggers go weeks without blogging. Yours is almost daily – it’s thoughtful – well-written – FUNNY as all heck – informative and full of great pictures. So THANK YOU for all your efforts to make this a truly spectacular blog.
    I own all your books. They are great books, but I also want to commit to you as you have committed to us. I feel a sense of loyalty.
    I have learned so much from your blog. Before your blog I’d never knit a pair of socks (and didn’t understand those who knit socks!) and now I am a sock knitter (as well as an everything else knitter). I’ve learned techniques and started all sorts of projects because of your blog. I’ve also had my love of knitting reconfirmed here – almost daily – and it’s fantastic. I also love Hank (for me this blog is sadly lacking enough Hank posts – I still can’t recover from his photo shoot of you a while ago) and all the other characters – lovely of you to share a bit of your family with us.
    It’s nice to have a place that has lovely pictures and inspiration from a smart and strong woman who knows a cup of hot tea and some yarn is something to be appreciated.
    Happy 8 year anniversary!

  97. I have only been reading for a few years, but your books and blog have changed me from someone who knit a few Fun Fur scarves into a knitter, Ravel-er and spinner. Thank you for introducing me to this wonderful community

  98. A big thanks to you Stephanie. You forgot to mention MSF. Imagine over a million dollars and growing. How wonderful for the people thay help and wonderul for you and your family. Can only imagine wonderful things for you and yours. Margaret

  99. Wow! It’s hard to believe it’s been 8 years. It’s been a wonderful journey for all of us that comprise “The Blog” too. Some days you make us laugh, some days you make us cry and some days you tell us everything we need to hear, whether we want to hear it or not. Thank you for the amazing trip this whole thing has been. We LOVE you too!

  101. Happy Blogiversary! Today is my blogiversary too (3 years). At the time I had no idea that I was starting a blog on the same day as you- but in a weird way I feel like it totally fits because your blog was a big influence on me wanting one of my own. Yours was the first blog I ever read and the first I subscribed too. Thank you for sharing your life, knitting, humor, and inspiration!

  102. I’m so glad I found you and The Blog. I learned so much about knitting, I love your humor and your down-to-earth wisdom, and I’m glad to have you in my life. Although we never met in real (and probably never will), you are like real person and a friend to me. You have made my day so often by making me laugh (and a lot of that!), you often touch my heart through the screen of a computer and across an ocean, and right now I’ve got tears in my eyes. Thank you for being the person you are, and thank you for sharing your life with us. We love you back!

  103. Happy blog anniversary! I’ve been poking around the archives for a few days now, and I keep finding delightful things I didn’t remember reading the first time around. (I took up spinning like a week ago. I’m reading everything I can get my hands on.)
    This post made a bit weepy, because even though the extent of my blogging is Twitter and Tumblr, the internet has brought so many amazing people and places into my life – I live in Finland, and the reason I gave the spinning thing a go was because a friend I was visiting/meeting for the first time in Chicago is a terrible enabler.

  104. Not everyone has a blog as good and great as you and I think you know why. You are a gift to the knit community and an inspiration to many of us.

  105. Back to you ten-fold for love, darlin’ – even if your publicist has yet to be convinced that Iowa is a real state with real fiber-loving citizens who drink microbrews and wines, eat all kinds of food including vegetarian meals, who are in need of a visit with your wonderful self. 🙂 Happy, *happy* Blogiversary!

  106. Sorry for the multiple posts… My computer was giving me the “failed to connect message” and I didn’t think it had posted! But I really mean it… THANK YOU and HAPPY BLOGIVERSARY!

  107. Love you too 🙂 I feel I’ve learned and grown so much reading your blog the past few years. Thank you!
    Imra

  110. Happy Blogiversary! We’ve laughed at your foibles, celebrated your good times, been humbled and empowered and inspired to do good knitterly works in the world! Thanks for just being you!

  111. Yours was the first blog I started reading, Yours is still the best. Any day you post is a guaranteed moment of pleasure for me. I can’t remember when I started reading but I know I backed up and I’ve read it all. I’ve told people that have no interest in knitting that they should read your blog from the beginning just to see a woman reinvent herself. Reading your blog opened up the door to the online knitting community for me and somewhere along the line I found a place where I fit in.
    Happy Blogaversary, the blog does indeed love you back (resistance is futile)

  112. The blog loves you too! Thanks so much for putting a smile on my face, and for making me think, and for teaching me of the sneakiness of squirrels. I maintain a blog for my job, and I know how hard it is to keep things fresh, and you do that marvelously all of the time. Cheers!

  115. Thank you for the amazing insights, laughs, and sharing your life and perspective!

  116. Happy Blogiversary!
    I would also say, thank you. For a laugh, a thoughtful comment, for connecting all of us to the Others that are out there through your comments (I’ve found many other blogs that way), for a welcome break on a stressful day, for some helpful knitting hints, for your words of encouragement to knitters and writers alike.
    Oh, and goodness, think of what the Blog AND YOU have done for MSF/DWB!!

  117. This. Just this.
    This is why even though my blog is small and infrequently read I keep doing it. The people I connect with are part of the story of my life and provide a level of joy that I wouldn’t experience any other way. Happy anniversary!

  118. I have always read your blog when I needed a little inspiration or a good laugh. I have always felt like we are cyber knitting friends. From one knitter to another, Happy anniversary and thanks for you being you and sharing it with us!

  119. Happy Anniversary, Stephanie! Up to now I’ve never commented here (for fear of getting lost in the crowd), but today I wanted to say thank you:
    – for reducing me to a pile of giggles when I am in dire need of a laugh
    – for introducing me to the concept of thrummed mittens and thereby saving my fingers from frostbite
    – for being there when I need to say to my husband: Check that blog I told you about. It will help you understand why I was a sobbing bundle of despair when my yarn ran out three days before Christmas.
    – for making me proud to say: I’m a knitter!
    – for generally being awesome.
    Thanks, Steph, and much love!

  120. I knew you on knitlist (remember when we said you were so funny, you should be published? true dat!) I have probably read every post as I moved from WA to KY to NC with two corgis and a lot of yarn.

  121. No thank you, as a single person you are the one that daily puts the knitting smile on my face….
    Here is 8 years of Thank You’s and love ………….

  122. Happy Blogiversary. Thanks for sharing your life with us and making ours a bit brighter in the process.

  123. Aw shucks. I’m getting a little teary eyed.
    Thank you for being you. You’ve made me a better person and knitter. Thank you for being a part of my life!

  124. OOh you have a way with words – thry flow & bring great smiles.
    Many Happy more Blog years to come.
    Love from our blog in New Zealand.

  127. Happy, happy 8th blogiversary!
    Thank you for all the knitting stories and knowledge. But even more importantly, for sharing your joys & frustrations (perhaps particularly the frustrations — many folks want to deny those exist) of raising strong, independent kids.
    Knit on, friend.

  128. I so enjoy every post.. But I do think you have to shoulder some of the blame for my outrageous queue on ravelry 😉
    Happy Anniversary, many more!

  129. Your blog has enriched my life in so many ways, so I say Happy Blogiversary and thank you!!

  132. You know, we don’t read just any old blogs. For myself, I read yours because it is entertaining, funny, smart, thoughtful, practical… warm, insightful, a little political. Because you are real when you write. Because you love being a Canadian. Because we both live in the same city and ride the same streetcars. Because I, too, believe in dress mittens.
    The Blog is here for you because you are here for us too.

  133. You have enriched our lives in ways you may never know as you share your life with us. Your understated sense of humor just cracks me up. Your girls are around the ages of my boys (23 to 16) and your posts have frequently brought laughter (comparing steeking to parenthood) and tears (New Years Eve when you posted about seeing your little ones in their sweaters and seeing it as proof that they were well loved. My oldest moved out of the house that day and after reading your post, I cast on a Lucky Dragon scarf for him). We love you beyond words.

  134. Thank you, Stephanie. You’ve been a wonderful constant and I look forward to your posts every week. Without them, I don’t know if I would have been able to stand up (in a way that made sense) to the ones who snicker and think what we do is a waste of time. Or that we don’t know how to relax.
    IMHO, you are a jewel.

  135. Steph, you made me misty at my desk. In front of coworkers. I looked silly and didn’t care.
    You always have a family member in any place you go. You’re always welcome in my house and I’m pretty sure in the home of many of you Blog.
    We love you too, in a big and little and magnanamous way that you’ve inspired in us.

  137. I cannot remember when I first started reading The Blog, but I know that it is a very important part of my life. I now knit socks because I found your basic sock pattern and it fits my foot perfectly. When there were times that were so hard that you could not write The Blog, I missed you. Those were the times when I re-read the older entries and I was so glad they were there. Happy Blogiversary. I enjoy your books and your sense of humor. Love ya.

  138. We love you too – my last 8 years have been made better through your writing, thank you! Your humor and outlook on life has brought me tears of joy, happiness and occasionally much needed hilarity. Thank you again, and I look forward to the next 8!

  141. Dear SPM,
    I usually don’t leave a comment, for I find (or at least think) I have nothing worthwhile to contribute to the comments. But after reading this entry, this member of The Blog would like to thank you for sharing your thoughts, stories, anecdotes, and life with us. I have truly enjoyed reading this blog and finally got up the courage to come to one of the stops on your book tour. You held my sock in progress and I held your’s. It was magical. 🙂
    Thanks for continuing The Blog and not giving up on us once you realized that you are a successful author, and that it was a real job and that people would pay to read what you have written and that this would provide you and your family financial support, even if your mum doesn’t think so.

  142. Thank you for welcoming us into your life, your family, and your knitting world. It is our great pleasure to your Blog. Much love, one of the blog. (haha, laughed because blog and borg are soooo close. I’d be a member of your borg).

  143. I don’t comment often, but I always read — but I want to join in the collective voice of “The Blog” today and share in say saying WE LOVE YOU TOO! Thanks for inviting us into your life to share this journey with you. It’s wonderful to think that no matter how far apart we all are or how different we all are, that we’re all interconnected in this life … not unlike the stitches held together in knits and purls.

  144. I’m a relatively new member to “the blog,” having been a reader for about 8 months or so and I just wanted you to know what a pleasure it is. I’m a lifelong bad knitter, one who can’t seem to do more than the basic scarf and even then mostly never finished a project. But I love yarn, loving to knit and love to read about someone who does it so well, professionally and with such great humor. I enjoy your writing so much and you literally write in a way that makes me think I know you and we are friends. of course we’ve never met and you have no idea who I am, but still, we seem to be friends and that is a tribute to your wit, grace, and humor. Congrats on 8 greats blog years! I’m looking forward to many more.

  145. Congratulations on 8 years blogging! When I see there’s a blog from you, I smile and think, “There’s a blog from Stephanie! Should I save it for later or read it now?” Usually “read it now” wins 🙂
    Thank you for enriching my life via your blog and your books 🙂 🙂 🙂

  146. Thank You for the past eight years. While I wasn’t there for all of them (very few really) I wish that I had been. I love you too.

  147. OOOOHHHH yes – “From Soup to Socks” sounds like a great book title!
    Congrats on 8 eye opening, world expanding years!

  148. Happy Blogversary and Thank *YOU*
    My life has expanded and branched out in ways unimaginable to me since first stumbling upon your blog in early 2005 while searching “how to spin wool” then soon after discovering your first book and remembering it was written by that funny knit blog lady…
    Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
    And once again, a thank you to Ken for the enabling.

  150. Thank you for being you. For letting The Blog into your home & giving us a glimps of something else.
    I’ve been reading for 4 years now & it’s given me something to smile at when I needed it and the knowledge that I’m not alone in my obsession!
    Happy Blogversary!

  152. I feel like a real person but I can just about accept that I’m only virtual over at your side of the screen. It must be a bit like Tron, I go in real and come out all digital.

  154. Happy Blogiversary Steph! Thanks for all of the laughs and life over the last 8 years. We love you back!

  155. YAY! Gratz on 8 years of awesomeness! I remember the first time I read the blog…musta been about 5 or 6 years ago..wow, time flies, and it made me laugh laugh laugh/cry it was so funny. I read through the entire archives and then went out and bought one of your books and loved that too. Bravo to the Yarn Harlot for making knitting even more fun..cheers!

  156. I am at least 20 years older than you are (probably more than 20) and have been knitting for about 50 years. About 8 months ago, I discovered knitting blogs, and yours quickly became my favorite. Along with reading your blog, I have spent hours laughing out loud while reading your books. Thanks so much for teaching an “old gal” some new tricks about life and knitting.

  157. It’s totally mutual. Happy blogiversary and thank you so much for writing. You are inspiring and I thank you for the laughs and the tears.

  158. Thanks for sharing your wisdom, knowledge and humor the last eight years. I do not think that my knitting would have been grown if not for you. cd

  159. Stephanie! Happy Anniversary to you! Without you, I would never have had the courage to try lace, or the inspiration to start my own blog. MWAH!

  161. Right back atcha! Thank you so much for sharing who you are, what you do and what you believe. As so many others have said before me, your blog is one of the highlights of my day. I hope it continues to nurture you (even in ways you don’t expect).

  162. Thanks back. A friend shared your blog when I was pregnant and professionally scared, and knitting a million little socks that didn’t fit my baby. We hang them on our tree instead. Thanks for sharing the knit, rip out, reknit stories (I’m not alone), for new vocab (startitis), and for the monthly sock club. I’m not at one a month, but I have more than a week’s worth of socks and counting. My socks are the most hotly desired knitwear among my friends and family, and the leaping off point for a lunch time knitting at work group. Keep your points sharp, your words kinds, and your fibers soft.

  165. Thank you! Your writing has provided some giggles when giggles were desperately needed, and also helped with knitterly inspiration. Oh, and peek into Canada I probably never would have had otherwise. Thank you for broadening my worldview!

  166. I cannot imagine my life without the joy that you’ve introduced me to through your blog (and the rest of your writings, for that matter). Thank you, thank you, thank you!

  167. Happy 8 years! I refer to you as The Harlot and most times when I am laughing out loud at my computer it is you that has caused it!!! I am so happy that I found your blog!

  169. Happy Blogiversary Stephanie! Thank you for welcoming The Blog to your world! You are also a part of our world, with a seat a the kitchen table or a place on the couch by the fire. My family loves your humor and insight. Many thanks!

  171. Steph, this is such a wonderful post – I would have never had any idea of how a blog could open up the world so much. The helpful people I would have anticipated, knitters tend to be so nice and supportive of one another – but not the rest. Thanks for sharing this, your thoughts, your family, your life – your everything!

  172. Thank you Yarn Harlot and Happy Anniversary. Every day I can read a new post is a brighter one for me.

  173. Thank you!! For giving us good laughs, good info, for encouraging us in our knitting (that really means alot to me–you make us feel like, yes, we CAN do it!!), great patterns, sharing yours and your families lives,your adventures, all the great knitters and babies! you’ve met along your way…and more and more. Thank you!

  174. Thank you for being smart and funny and most of all for being outspoken when it matters, especially when it matters for women and children and justice and people in need. Thanks also for being bravely yourself and allowing women to know that you can be famous and brilliant and also not own a bra. 🙂

  175. Happy Blogiversary! We have almost the same blogibirthday as mine started Jan 6 2004 thanks a certain Emma Jane up in your neck of the woods.

  176. Happy Blogiversary! Your blog was a gift to us, too. Your posts have helped me solve more than one knitting mystery, given me the courage to try lace and convinced me that I’m not crazy when I swatch and swatch and *still* don’t get the right gauge. And there has been more than one gloomy day when reading one of your posts has been a nice pick-me-up. I laughed until I cried at the post about Joe getting the truck stuck between the garage and a light pole. Thanks and I’m looking forward to many more years of reading your blog!

  177. We love you too. I always look forward to the next entry! Here’s to many more years of writing books and on the blog. Hugs. 🙂

  178. I have unfortunately not gotten to be there from the beginning; only the last three years or so, but they have been a wonderful three years. I have even found myself sharing your blog and books with others, whether they are knitters are not because of the joy and uplifting humor of your writing. Occasionally I even go back and sift through the archives when I find myself in need of a bit of a yarnharlot fix. Thank you for sharing your views, thoughts, joy, and creative spirit with all of us.
    Q

  179. Happy Blogiversary! As much as we have been there for you on your journey, even more so you have been here for each of ours. You have given each of us comfort, joy, sorrow, inspiration, occasionally frustration (yeah, where is the gansey) and always friendship without limits. Although you personally are not there when we need you, your blog is. It is so good to have a non-judgmental friend to “chat” with on a nearly daily basis. Thank you.

  180. Stephanie, I have enlarged my world as a result of The Blog! Thank You! It has been wonderful to get to know other people in our green and blue planet through your words.
    Happy Blogiversary!

  181. Happy 8th Blogiversary! Thank you for sharing so much of yourself and your life (knitting and otherwise) and I am glad that it has been a mostly good experience for you to blog. I look forward to reading your blog every day and am disappointed when you don’t post one although I know you need a day off now & then! Honored to be part of THE BLOG.

  182. You, and your writings, are wonderful, lovely, inspiring, and all things good. You have brought so much good to my life, and my life is so much better in so many ways because of you. Thank you!

  184. As much as you have received from this blog, you have given to us 10 times over. Happy Blogiversary!!

  185. re: For teaching me that not all knitters are nice
    I think there is a new book here. I see people posting info they should not on the Internet all the time. So many people do know know how long the info is cached or how many people they are addressing. I think a “beware of the Internet” for non-tech people is a book greatly overdue. But face it, no one would read such a boring book. But your humor would make your book a best seller!
    Blog on

  187. Thanks, Stephanie, for keeping it real. Not just with knitting, but with parenting, traveling,and simply life in general. You give me a good laugh when I need it the most on countless occasions.
    Here’s to (at least) another 8 years!

  190. Stephanie, reversely in my household I talk frequently about my “knitting friend” and my family thinks I’m referring to a colleague at work, when really I mean you! Thank you for being my virtual friend and source of inspiration.

  191. I just know I’m not the only one who couldn’t make it to the end without crying … right?
    Whatever may have been given to you, you have given back a million times over so thank you too.
    Happy Blogiversary!

  192. Thank you. I’m happy and pleased that I am part of your world. Know that I love having you part of mine. (even my husband reads your blog. sometimes I think out of self defense since if he didn’t he’d be hearing about it anyway! LOL)
    What the internet has done to all our worlds is amazing.
    Happy annivesary and please, please, have many many more!!

  194. Thank you for you willingness to show up and to share so generously. We’re all the better for being your witnesses and – hopefully – cheerleaders.
    Happy, Happy, Happy Day to you!

  195. Dear Stephanie – Thank you for the Yarn Harlot and all it has brought to the knitting world, including DWB/KWB. I always read but rarely comment anymore. You have sooo many commenters, but if there ever comes a time when it is like the old days – when being 180th meant I was at the end and not the middle, I’ll be back with supportive comments. You are here for us, and we are here for you. Knit On, Sister.

  196. And we love you too!!
    Thank you dear Stephanie,
    The Blog has made me laugh, cry, gasp, dance and sing.
    It has amazed me, made me love more and broadened my horizons – not just my knitting horizons, but my standing in the world horizons.
    I have been both discouraged by fellow mankind and uplifted by mankind. More uplifted that discouraged for there is more good than not out there in this world of ours.
    Through the Blog I have become a better knitter and craft person. Knitting has taught me patience, kindness and the willingness to push my boundaries farther that I would have on my own. I’m not talking just about knitting here as it relates to my life overall as well.
    I am grateful to the Blog for linking me up with websites relating to other knitter’s blogs, patterns, ideas, food, health, technology,etc. etc.
    Most of all I am grateful to you Stephanie for sharing your world in such an honest forthright and vulnerable manner. You don’t sugar coat stuff – you just tell it like it is. I always know I get the Truth from you. Congratulations on 8 years of The Blog. We are all enriched by this experience.
    I must thank Cat Bordhi, for it is through her that I found Tina of Blue Moon Fiber Arts and through Tina, I found you.
    I wish you many more years of The Blog and all it holds dear to all of us and you.
    Knitterly Blessings,
    Naomi

  197. I start every day with a good cup of coffee and a look at your blog. Every day. I look even when I know you probably aren’t posting because of something you mentioned in a previous blog. You are part on my morning ritual. You are one of the best parts,although the great cup of Kona and a good round of rubbing up the cat while simultaneously reading your blog may be enhancing the experience. 🙂 However,those days when it is just you and me are mighty fine. Thank you!!

  199. And thank you- for sharing knits and techniques and adventures and generally making my world a brighter, warmer and woollier place than it was before I discovered your writing. 🙂

  200. Happy Anniversary. Who knew you would become part of my every day. Thanks for all the humour and the knitting.

  202. Happy Blogiversary! Love you, your family and your blog. Love your knitting and of course your wit and writing. You “rock”! May you have many more “blog” years ahead!

  203. Happy blogiversary! You and another knitting blogger gave me the courage to learn to knit. Thank-you! May this blog continue to be as beneficial to you as it has been to the rest of us! Cheers!

  204. Happy Blog Day! Thank you for inspiring me and making me laugh. You’re awesome and we love you!

  207. Happy Blogiversary! I recently realized that in taking the plunge last year to finally start my own blog, you were a big inspiration in making that step. You are a knitter, an advocate, a friend, an instructor, a humorist, a reassuring voice in the fray, and an unfailing supporter of making that gauge swatch if you know what’s good for you. I can only hope to emulate what you represent to me and the knitting world. 🙂

  208. You’re humorous, educational, and pretty special yourself! You’re welcome and thank you!

  209. Thanks for lots of laughs and so much focused determination that I’ve sometimes pretended to borrow some of that to get me through a day or over a hump. Don’t stop, will you?

  212. I am sorry to say I have not been reading you for eight years since I only “discovered” you a couple years ago. I do have all your books, check the blog daily, and dare I say it “love, love Stephanie Pearl McPhee!! Keep on going, girl!

  213. You’re very welcome and a hearty Thank You for opening your world up to us! Many more years to come!

  214. It’s a mutual admiration society around here. Reading your blog makes me happy. THANK YOU!!

  215. Happy Blogiversary, many more Happy Blogiversaries.
    I look forward to both your blog posts and to all of your wonderful books.

  218. Happy Blogiversary and here’s to another 8 years of knitting high jinks!
    re not all knitters are nice…
    Granted you’ve dealt with some unpleasant characters but I know some people who are struggling to live with mental illness. It is very difficult for them and having to deal with misunderstandings about their condition just makes it harder for them. Most people with mental illnesses are neither nasty nor violent.

  219. Happy anniversary Stephanie! Thank you for sharing your knitting adventures and projects. I’ve picked up some helpful tips and ideas for future projects.

  220. Right back at you, with thanks for teaching me what an adventure knitting can be and for being the wind beneath my “knitting” wings

  221. Right back atcha’. So glad to be a part of The Blog, all that it is, and all that it will continue to become.
    Several years ago I was at a book reading/signing that I really, really didn’t want to be at (that very good friend still owes me one for going with her). I wandered around the book shop and tripped over your first book. All because of that, said very good friend has been totally forgiven for the event. I’ve been hooked ever since. Thank you. When I first read the book I wondered, “How did this woman get inside my head?” I’ve since discovered there’s a whole world of us, which is a wonderful thing, but it does make it a little crowded in my head from time to time.

  223. Happy Blogversary! I hope the next 8 years are just as wonderful if not more so. Your blog has taught me so much & brought a lot of joy! Thank you!

  224. I love you Stephanie! Thank you for sharing your blog with all of us these past 8 years. I look forward to your posts and I have purchased, read, and re-read all of your books. Keep up the fabulous work!
    Blogless Mary Lou

  225. I’m very new in The Blog and, even if I read it frequently, I also never participate in its life. But I had to say something to this post: it is beautiful and moved me when I read it. So thank you.
    And happy anniversary!

  228. Thank you, dear Steph, for so many things, knittterly and otherwise. I am a (much) better knitter because I read your blog, and have a MUCH bigger stash. And I have learned a lot about looking at the world, after having seen it through your eyes.
    May the next 8 years be as wonderful for all of us who are privileged to be members of the Blog.

  234. Another knitter guided me to your blog not long after you started it in 2004. It’s been something I look forward to and I check it every day. I always feel an, “Oh, Yea!” when there is a new entry. Thank you for what you do. Your words on blog and in print are most appreciated. Happy Blogiversary!

  236. Thank you for 8 years of laughter and smiles. I don’t even knit anymore and “The Blog” is still my favourite one to read.

  239. I would not be a knitter now if I had not stumbled onto your books and blog. And now it’s a huge–and wonderful—part of my life. Thank you!!!

  241. Thank you! And Happy Blogiversary!! You have given so much of the same back to us. I constantly say, Stephanie said this, or did that and my friend has to keep reminding herself I mean Stephanie of the blog, and not somoene we both know in our “real” lives. You’ve inspired me, brought me a laugh, a tear, and by mid afternoon most days, no matter what my day is like, I know I can click on my YanrHarlot icon and spend the next few minutes in a wonderful place with you. You’ve given as much as you’ve gotten – and you deserve all the happiness that this brings you.

  242. I too seldom comment as you have so many but thank you for sharing your wonderful sense of humor and perspective. Being an independent knitter, I appreciate being part of the fold here.

  243. I first learned of your blog during the winter olympics in British Columbia. You were knitting a Dale of Norway sweater with a maple leaf on it- in TWO WEEKS! I could not believe my eyes. Could she do it? could anyone do it? So I was hooked. I had to read every day, hoping for an update. And of course, you did it. I have really enjoyed reading your posts every few days and feeling myself a part of a bigger knitting community. Thank you for your thoughts, your humor, your ideas, and your wit and wisdom. You are a delightful part of my online life. Here’s to many many more years of the Blog.

  244. Happy birthday Blog! Thank you for sharing.
    In particular, thank you for sharing the mistakes you have made. When I was starting out, it was a relief to hear that a seasoned knitter like you made mistakes too! And now it just makes me laugh (sorry about that, I’m laughing with you, not AT you!)

  245. Happy Blogiversary! I so enjoy your blog, books, calendars etc. You have been a topic of conversation around our family dinner table as well. Fun that my non-knitter family members understand my quirks better by haring some of your anecdotes. Thanks Stephanie.

  246. Happy Blogiversary! Thanks for sharing your wit and wisdom with us. I eagerly await your posts, sometimes they are the only highlight of otherwise blah work days. I am always inspired by how you have figured out how to do what you love for a living. If you can, maybe hope is not lost for me. ^_^

  247. Happy Blogiversary. You give to us, we give back to you. In a perfect universe, there you go. You are important to a lot of us. Thanks for not making this post too treacly, though. You are, for better or worse, a public person and there are nutcakes out there. One in particular whose arse I still want to kick around the block. But, I digress. Thanks you being you. Cheers!!

  248. Happy Blog-o-Versary!
    Thank you for all you bring to me, this little part of the blog-o-sphere. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve regaled people with tales of “This knitter I know – well, not really know but…”
    Here’s to many more years of The Blog.
    ~a

  249. You can tell from all these comments that you have enlightened our world. Thank you for continuing to do that. Glad to know that you’ve enjoyed it. We all think you have rocked our world in many ways. Keep writing. You are a realy treasure!

  251. I discovered you and knitting (okay, the knitting was rediscovered) about six months ago, and I can’t believe the change in my life. I’m working on my third (and fourth!) pairs of socks already, I’m caught up on 8 years of your blogging, and I’ve asked for all your books for birthday presents. Keep up the good work. You (and the Blog) make being a knitter a wonderful club to be in.

  252. Happy Blogiversary, dear Steph. We love you too.
    Thank you for the last eight years – laughter and tears, both – and please keep it coming!

  253. And THANK YOU, dear Yarn Harlot, for keeping us all in stitches.
    In more ways than one.
    We love you back!!!!

  254. I want to thank you!!! Many years ago… If it weren’t for you, I would have never found the Mid Michigan Knitters Guild, and made great friends. I had been reading your blog knitting quietly by myself. I found I had become this lonely yarn addict. No one else understood. Then one day you posted about being in Ann Arbor for a book signing. I saw some photos of people identified as MMKG and some names. I googled the people, found their blogs. Wormed my way into Tuesday night knit-ins and eventually joined the guild. (Was president for 2 years). Thank you, Stephanie!

  255. I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before, but you are the reason I’m a knitter. One of my knitting friends sent me the link to your blog post with your cat in the bathroom a few years back. I enjoyed it so much, I went back to read all of your old posts. The knitting got inside my head and the next thing I knew, I had needles and yarn in my hands. I have met some wonderful people through knitting and it’s all because of you. So THANK YOU for sharing yourself with us. We love you, too!

  256. Happy blog anniversary Stephanie! I discovered your blog when I was just starting to knit and through it you have thaught me a whole lot of knitterly (and not so knitterly) things! Thank you for sharing your passion and for making me smile and laugh so often!

  263. I have been reading for 3 years and went back to the begining posts….what fun.
    I wonder how much “passing forward” you have enabled ? I have managed to teach 2 others how to knit because of interest in my knitted socks, which I only attempted because yours are too beautiful to resist.
    Thank you for keeping the posts coming, we all know it isn’t easy some days.
    Thank you for all the wonderful mornings of catching up with what is going on and I now make sure I am NOT drinking or eating when I read The Harlot.

  265. Steph,
    Happy Anniversary! We love you too.
    (And many thanks for the advice to get an ablet. I love mine, and lots of my fellow knitters, and even a crocheter, covet it!)
    Terry

  267. We love you too. It’s a pretty kind world out there when you open yourself to it (although I do get your points about the small percentage that you need to keep an eye out for).

  268. Thank you too Stephanie! I found knitting and your blog at the same time, and each has been richer and better because of the other. I cannot separate them in my mind and life, and I don’t want to. Please keep writing, books, blogs and whatever suits your fancy. Just keep on.

  269. Happy blogiversary. Someone once asked me what I consider great writing, and I said that if a writer manages to really capture the experience of love, I am very impressed. It’s hard to do; it’s so easy to be cliche, and everyone’s experience of love is so specific it can be impossible to write about it in a way that is universal. I’ve only really encountered it a few times. One of those times was your birthday tribute to Joe in 2005. Sometimes when I’m feeling blue I go and read it just to feel the reflected glow. Thanks for that.

  271. You’re welcome. The Blog, and I, thank you. For sharing your talents, insights, humour, worries and triumphs. You make us laugh, cry, persevere, and think outside ourselves (Knitters Without Borders being a case in point). You would be welcome in my kitchen, or garden, should you ever be up this way. Enjoy your day, and we, The Blog, look forward to many more years together.

  273. I sure am glad I had the nerve to call your publisher and ask if we could be on the tour for your first book. You’ve reminded me how to soothe my granddaughter (“match their intensity,”) consoled us all for slip-ups (the two right-handed mittens) and allowed us the joys of anticipatory schadenfreude (refinishing the bedroom, burning sawdust, just plain white paint.) We’ve fallen in love with your husband (entirely your fault) and felt like aunts to your daughters (Sam’s definition of “knitterly” has spared the world untold horrors — I don’t think she realizes.) Most of all, we’ve been able to watch you turn, the possessive its aside, into a damn fine writer. Wish I were there to buy you a drink.
    Everybody, now… Kumbayaaaaa…..

  275. Stephanie,
    Happy Blogiversary!! I’ve only been reading as long as I’ve been knitting (a little over 3 years) and I don’t comment all that much, but I’ve loved being connected with you through the Blog!

  276. Dear Stephanie: we, the blog, love you too! You’ve made me a much better knitter in a fearless sort of way, and showed me how much fun it can be to geek out about knitting. My first flash mob was your idea (I still make the motions in my head every time I hear that song), and I’ve become a confident knit-in-public advocate.
    Thank you for sharing your passions and your family with all of us. Happy Podiversary!

  277. Oops! Meant Blogiversary, not Pod (that Brenda Dayne gets into my head at the oddest times!). 😉

  278. the blog thanks you, and I personally thank you. I have learned so much from you and “the blog” and my day is brighter when I read your blog and what “the blog” has to say.

  280. Happy Blogiversary, Stephanie, and thank you for all you have given us! I’ve enjoyed looking through this window into your world and stepping into your living room. I’ve loved watching your girls grow into beautiful women, and I wish you many years of happiness ahead and hope I can listen in to the news. I’m sorry for the harder lessons the blog has taught you, but am glad it didn’t deter you and you kept on writing. Thank you!

  283. Just so you know, it has been a two way street here. Thank you for all your sharing and your teaching and enlightening and inspiring. Oh, and thanks for more than a few laughs! I am glad we met. I hope we are blog relatives for a long time.

  284. Aww, bless you!
    Thank YOU for all your wonderful blog entries – I missed out on the first three years, but I’ve been reading pretty consistently since then.
    Many Happy Returns.
    X

  285. Thank you for helping to make us better knitters, certainly braver knitters, and better people! I look forward to tea with The Blog and the chuckles that accompany it. Happy Blogiversary!

  286. Right back atcha, babe!
    And thank you for sharing with us. I particularly appreciate when you share the difficulties as well as the triumphs. When I feel like I’m getting my butt kicked by whatever I’m knitting I just remember the time you knitted two left mittens…twice. And I figure that if after 30 odd years of knitting you can still make mistakes of that caliber (and then continue to turn out projects of wondrous splendor), then maybe my next project will be okay, even if the current one is crap.

  287. Thank you, Stephanie. I’m not at all facile in the word department anymore so I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your writing here so frequently, sharing with us, and for making me realize that not everyone but me has a perfect life. I wish you many blessings and may we all continue to share your blog for at least another 8 years.

  288. Thank you so much for sharing your life and blog with us. I’ve been enriched and had a lot of good laughs. Blessings for the next 8 years!

  289. Happy Blogiversary to you, too. Thank you for sharing your view of the world, and by doing so, showing so many others that they are not alone, or weird, and that many others share their passion for creating something with their hands. And that it is okay to not always be perfectly put together, and that it is okay not to even care that you are not. I love that you share that sense of self-confidence and freedom to be yourself, defined by different terms that those handed to us by general society. Your writing is a touchstone to those who are criticized for loving a craft that is often derided, and the Blogs’ comments help show that there is a well-spring of strong commitment to helping others (MSF donations, etc.). Though no good can exist without some bad(commenters), it seems over the years the good and good-intentioned far, far exceed the bad, and your archives contain probably a million good and well-intentioned comments. So congratulations for 8 fantastic year, almost 20% of your life!

  294. Congratulations on 8 wonderful years of blogging! Like many have said, even though we have never met, i feel like we are best friends. Your blog has been a great source of laughter and tears over the years and i am looking forward to many more!

  295. Thank you for being you. I only discovered you 3 years ago after reading one of your books and since then my day is not complete without having a ” chat ” and a laugh and a cry with you. Thank you, Steph. XXXXX

  297. Right back at you, Steph! There have been days when a little chuckle while reading your blog has been the only good thing in my day. Thank you for sharing your chuckles with me.

  298. Well, my dear, we love you too. You make me happy quite often, with the knitting knowledge you impart as well as the stories, the family oh and the knitting (did I mention the knitting?). I can’t believe it’s been eight years…I guess time does fly when you are having fun. Thank you!

  299. i was a little worried when i started to read today’s entry. i thought you were going to say after 8 years you were done. i was scared, but i kept reading. thanks for making me laugh out loud. i hate when you don’t write for a few days. how dare you have a life! you are my knitting fix. i read the old entries when i am desperate. here is to another 8 years at least.

  300. We love you, too! You have empowered us a knitters, as women, as people. You are fun to read and also educational. Happy Blogiversary!

  301. Thank YOU, Stephanie! I’m so glad I found your blog. It’s so much more than a knitting blog and I appreciate that. I’m glad the positive has far outweighed the negative and you’ve stuck it out.

  303. I think ‘The Blog’ gets a lot in return, so it’s a fairly symbiotic relationship. Personally, I’ve learned a ton about Canada and her people from you. Not that I had a lot of mis-conceptions, more like few specific ideas. Happy Blogaversary!

  304. Stephanie, I found you, your books and your blog at a very stressful time in my life. Your sense of humor gave me back mine, and through your writing you became my friend. I cherish our “cyber friendship” and look forward to reading your blog late each afternoon as a break from work. Here’s to another 8+ years.

  306. well, i’d just like to thank you for every time i’ve quoted you – “well Stephanie says…..!”
    thanks and best wishes on your blogiversary!

  310. Thank you for books, blog, patterns, ideas, visits (St. Paul, Minnesota on an ice night!), exposure to so many corners of the world (NE Canada, London!), and an assurance that even though I’m an old-bag knitter I can still learn new tricks! Thank you!!

  313. When I see an updated post from you, I know my day will be a little more tolerable. Here’s to many more blogoversaries to come!

  314. It is a strange, and wonderful thing to me the way the blogosphere can bring people together. We may be across states/provinces, continents or halfway around the world, but we still communicate in ways you might expect in a living room or a local coffe shop or pub. You have remarked more than once that you consider your blog like your living room, and I agree. We may not all “talk” much, but we sure listen. I just love that, and I wish you many more years of the blog, life and absofreaking fabulous knitting! I feel like I have thousands of new friends…a diverse lot true, but a community, none-the-less. Anyhow, happy “blogoversary,” keep up the fantastic work, and thanks!

  315. When you post a new piece on the blog I feel as if I’ve been given a personal gift (with no wrapping that requires a trip to the recycling bin).
    I need to thank you again for teaching me to make socks – that fit!!! Patterns just don’t seem to think that’s important.
    And, really Stephanie, you think you can use a digital camera “pretty well”? I conclude that must be the Canadian in you talking. If anyone needs an Etsy shop it’s you.
    Finally, oh how I hope you don’t desert us any time soon.

  316. Thank you for eight years of posts! It’s really nice, after going around in circles with a pattern, to read your blog and know that even experienced knitters forget to read instructions or don’t get gauge, and curse at their knitting too!

  317. Happy blogiversary! I love you too (but hopefully no more than it is sane to when I only know you through your writing). Thanks for sharing so much with us.

  318. Happy Blogoversay, and thank you. Your blog and writing have brought an extra dimension to my life also. I would not have tackled some of my knitting projects if not for you.
    If you ever find yourself in the Washington,DC area, I will be happy to bring you wine and chocolate.

  320. This experience has been a two way street. Thank you for being there for us. Personally I have counted you as a friend, and laughed, cried, learned along with you. Once again, thank you and Congrats.

  321. Thank you so much for your great writing, both in the books and on the blog. When I get really frustrated, I pick up one of your books and read a random selection and it always makes me laugh. A favorite is helping Joe get his truck out of the icy alley behind his parents’ home. Read soon after I had pulled my husband and his large mowing tractor out of the lake – two times in one day using the four-wheeler; one of the joys of living on a farm!

  323. Thank you for expressing the feelings I have about the passion for yarn way better than I can. I’m always telling my husband, “read this to know how a knitter REALLY feels about……” You are the best!

  324. Thank you, Stephanie. I think of you and the best friend I never met (but hope to someday).

  327. thank YOU because it was your blog that really got me hooked on knitting. i really do credit you for making me a knitter. even though you were just words on a screen, it meant a lot to me.
    so thanks.

  328. Thank YOU for providing the knitting community & mentor that I don’t have in my life. Your blog is entertaining, informative and inspiring.

  329. Congratulations and keep it up! I hope we have have your for eight more years. I could write as long a post about the ways you’ve positively influenced my knitting and, thus, my life.
    We love you too, Stephanie!

  330. Happy Blogiversary to you,
    Happy Blogiversary to you,
    Happy Blogiverse dear Harlot,
    Happy Blogiversary to you!
    [And be grateful you don’t actually hear me singing.]
    Many thanks for creating and ‘chairing’ this piece of the universe. It has been a great joy to read, learn and share.
    Thank you as well for a truly great talk and workshop on the weekend. I’m practising! Argghhh. Muscle memory! 19 days to go.
    And especially thanks for all your writing. I’ve enjoyed it all.

  332. These last eight years have been a trip…I am glad we are going on it together! Thanks for all you do Steph!

  333. Eight years!! That’s fantastic! I’ve not even been blogging for a year, but your blog was one of those that inspired me to start. Here’s to the next eight years and my thanks to you for the fun and the inspiration that your blog brings into my life.

  334. Thanks back to you too! The first blog entry of yours I ever read was Oct 1 2009 and the title just got to me…On Becoming Something. I had been running for a bit over a year and the picture of your running-shoe clad feet spoke to me. I kept it as the link to your blog for the longest time for that photo and the title. Your blog has helped me become a better knitter in being more willing to try new things. And the laughter and tears have also been great. Thanks

  335. Everything we have given you, you have given us ten thousand times over. Onward and upward and here’s to year 9.
    Cheers and red wine, Hazel.

  337. Thanks right back! From the day I Googled “yarn” and your blog came up not far from the top, well, you brought a great new perspective on knitting. I really enjoy the project updates and general yarn-gazing, but it’s especially nice to see crackling humor, steady civility, good works and creative hard work put out in the public forum by someone who is vegetarian and only wears a bra when she has to 🙂

  338. Happy blogaversary, Steph! I’m always amazed by your writing – it feels as if you’re speaking just to me, over a cup of coffee or a beer. Your posts are fun, warm and inspiring. Thanks for these 8 years, and I’m looking forward to many, many more.

  339. I met you last fall and have since read your entire archive and most of your books. I have most resonated with your ability to be open in your writing. If your blog had only been about your knitting, it would not have been nearly as wonderful. I have viewed myself more forgivingly after reading your stories.
    Thank you very much for your honesty and openness. You are a treasure.

  341. Stephanie, you were the first blog I ever read and still the only one I look forward to catching up on – the day isn’t the same without you (no pressure 🙂 ). Thank you so much for caring and for sharing your wit, wisdom and feelings. Lots of love from NZ

  342. Happy Blogiversary. Thank you for continuing to post on the blog at a time when many people are using other ways to connect with people. I enjoy the blog and the comments. You have done so much for the knitting community via the blog, your books, your book tours,and Sock Summit. We appreciate you and are delighted that you are open to our feedback.

  343. Hi Stephanie,
    Happy Blogaversary!!! I am new to your blog, your books, but I love everything I have read so far. I look forward to your blog posts. I hope this next blogging year will be successful for you 🙂
    Take Care,
    Amy

  344. Happy Anniversary, Stephanie!
    We love you too! Thanks so much for your humor and spirit and for sharing so openly with us. Please know that you have been there for all of us too. In my darkest moments, I know that I can count on you to post something that puts a smile back on my face.
    To eight more years (and then some)!
    XOXO, kristin

  345. Congratulations – 8 years is a long time in the life of a blog!
    We really appreciate your hard work.

  346. Love right back atcha!!! Days when there is a post here, are the best days. 🙂 Happy blogaversary!

  348. Happy Blogaversary!! I’m so glad I found your blog all those years ago, and for me, it’s not only what you write but what “the blog” writes back. You telling your stories and “the blog” telling their stories. It’s been educational, thought provoking and touching to hear from so many voices from so many different backgrounds with two things in common, a love of knitting and this blog. Here’s to many more years blogging!

  351. As so many have said here (and much more eloquently), you brighten my day and by your example, encourage me to be a better person. You have touched so many lives that I believe, even on my worst days, that perhaps I too can bring joy to another human. Thank you for enduring, persevering, and just being yourself as hard as possible.

  352. You just made the blog cry! Thank you for what you have shared with us over these 8 years. Happy Blogaversary and much love.

  354. Congratulations, and thank you for sharing your life with us and always showing us what you’re knitting. Unless it’s a surprise for someone, in which case we hear about it, and see it later. Thank you also for your careful, well thought out comments on subjects that aren’t always directly about knitting, but nevertheless engage us to think, respond and comment. Here’s to another eight years! Cheers! (That was a glass of whatever your favourite beverage is, being raised.)

  355. Stephanie, it’s been wonderful being a small part of the Blog, and getting to know you and yours through your words and laughter and tears. Thank you for sharing yourself so beautifully and making me a MUCH better knitter, too! I know it’s only virtual, but I can see myself sitting with you over a glass of wine or scotch, discussing Amanda Peabody and rock n’ roll and how totally cool Canada is – all while knitting away and laughing.
    Thanks for making a Blog that lives and breathes will all of us!

  356. Steph,
    I am glad to have found your blog. It has been a wealth of information, and I always look forward to your posts.
    I also love that you write about more than just knitting.
    Congratulations on the Blogiversary!!
    Barbara Stoner

  357. Happy Blogiversary! It is because of you that I am sitting here writing this in my new, favorite “Owl” sweater. Thank you 🙂

  358. Thank you for sharing all your insights and your life with us! You have helped the whole fiber community as well as the knitting community with your wit, wisdom and humor.
    We look forward to 8 more years!

  359. Awwwww. You had me crying at my desk! Not topless but in a good way. I used to knit but now I am a knitter, thanks to you and this community that is “the blog”. Thank you for encouragement, great books, Sock Summit and I could go on……

  360. The Blog is a wonderful thing to be a part of. Thank you! When I was an exchange student in Brazil I spent loads of time on the internet, where I found your blog and was let into a whole world that I knew nothing about. I learned to knit in portuguese with my host mother because I couldn’t wait to be a part of it. I continued knitting, eventually getting a job at my LYS, giving more to knitting, and receiving more from the community of knitters than I ever thought possible. From finding this blog!

  361. I agree with Adeline (3:07 pm). I sit down with coffee every morning and check your blog (and the New York Times). I’m teaching a college course on, well, sustainable fibers, knitting etc (local food so why not local fiber?) We had our first class today and they all cast on. I’ve asked them to join Ravelry and read yours and Kate Davies blogs, but had technical difficulties trying to set up my laptop and show them. And, they will be reading SPM Casts Off, too, some of it for next week. I didn’t ask them to read the comments so I wonder if any will see this?
    Thank you for blogging so well and so often. It makes my day every day.

  362. Happy 8th anniversary and thank YOU, Steph. Yours was the first blog I ever started following. Like the song says, “just one look was all it took.”

  363. Thank you stephanie. I’m lucky to have found you. You are sometimes the lifeline in my headspace that’s makes me stop and calm down. Without you I would be a poorer person.

  365. Happy Anniversary!! I have never posted but I read it everyday and have enjoyed it more than you can know. Here’s to another 8 years and beyond!

  366. Happy Anniversary Steph!!
    Thank YOU for sharing your insight, talent, thoughts, and your life with us – The Blog. When you share the good I am happy for you, when you are down or when tragedy strikes, I have kept you in my prayers. You have provided the encouragement I need to tackle lace knitting, and inspired me in my own creativity.
    Here’s to many more years of The Blog!

  367. Happy Blogiversary!
    I love coming here and reading your posts day after day and month after month and year after you. You always make me laugh and have a great perspective on life. Thank you from one member of the collective Blog. (That makes me think of collective Borg but that is the nerd in me)

  368. It’s an honor to be a part of the Blog. Thank you, Steph, for sharing your life and craft with us. Happy Blogiversary, and may there be many, many more. We wuvs you, too!

  369. Your blog has helped me realize beyond knitting, that women’s lives are more similar than I thought. You share so many things so honestly and hysterically that I have to admit I’ve become a blog-a-holic. I’m in the process of knitting up a storm after raising 3 girls and working. The excitement never ends. What to make next, (startitis), I have every time I finish a project. Thanks so much Stephanie for being such a great inspiration to us all.

  370. Add my name to the hundreds of women that are richer for your books and blog! You cannot know how many times and ways you touch us at the heart and allow us to benefit from you wit and creativity. I look forward to each new post and am grateful you are here! Know that we do not take you for granted even if it might seem that way some days. WE LOVE THE HARLOT!!!

  371. I, as a member of the Blog Collective, salute you. Thank you for letting us into your life and making ours a little brighter each and everyday; And thank you letting me cut the line at your book signing in Brooklyn, when I had to deliver that baby 😉
    Happy Blogiversary.

  373. Thank YOU so much. I found your blog through your book “Casts Off” which I absolutely loved!! I felt like your wrote it for me. I love your writing, your insights, your sense of humor, and of course your knitting. I’ve learned so much, and admire you no end. You are a class act. Wishing you continued success, and continued knitting inspiration for us.. Also, thank you for introducing me to the nicest group of people in the world!!

  374. Happy Blogiversary! Thank you for the laughs, the tears and the knowing that even a prolific knitter can royally screw up knitting so my idiocy isn’t unusual.
    May you have many more years of The Blog.

  375. Happy Blogiversary! I could say the same about your blog, you know. It has caused me to change and grow. And thanks for validating knitting for me the way you have! I *know* that I look forward to your posts, and often tell my husband about the things you’ve said and done. In all honesty, I’ve been bracing myself lately, afraid you’ll have had enough. Here’s to the next 8 years!

  376. Happy Blogiversary! I’ve only been reading your blot since Christmas time, but I’ve enjoyed it all. You remind me that my life is not so crazy after all. Thank you.

  378. Thank you Stephanie! You are a gift to my day. I love your stories and your insight. And I love that there is someone like me and to read about your world.

  379. Hello, Stephanie,
    Loving you back. And thank you for the blog and your books, my life has been enriched by both. A blog is a powerful thing. Ask the doctors without borders. You are amazing and wonderful, honest and true. WE, the blog, love you back.
    Julie in San Diego, where it’s raining and dark.

  380. Thank you so very much. You are always one of the best parts of my day, and my life is better for having you in it.

  381. Happy anniversary! I must admit I just found you just last month and I have never been a blog reader. I feel as though it is my good fortune to have stumbled upon you. You are seriously the voice I hear in my head! I love your sarcasm, your wit, your insight, your honesty, and your vulnerability. I have spent some time going back to read your earlier posts when I open you up and you haven’t posted on that particular day. Now I know I have 8 years worth to read, oh lucky me! Enjoy this day and the many more to come.

  382. Thank YOU for eight years of inspiration. You started your blog just as I started knitting. You taught me that knitting is so much more than a hobby or craft — it’s a metaphor for life. You are a superb and soulful writer. Thank you for putting yourself out there as you have these eight years — a courageous thing to do in a world full of uncertainty. And thank you for sharing your observations that, save a few misguided folks, people are mostly kind and decent and willing to give of themselves for the sake of a better world. I think that, of all your messages over all the years, that’s the one I most appreciate.

  383. thanks for eight years of love. i stared reading as a college student and now i’m a married librarian… and the blog is the first website i check every morning. i knew how to knit before i started following you- but reading the blog is what made me WANT to knit.

  384. Happy Blogivesary and…THANK YOU! Your writing helps me keep my own life in perspective. I am always so grateful for your words on days you post and I miss you on days you don’t. Thanks, Stephanie. I hope someday I can meet you in person so you can sign one of your books that I read!! 🙂

  386. Hi Stephanie, Happy Blogversary! I must say that since my sister in law in Canada told me about you I have followed your blog. To me it is a connection to Canada in a way I’d like to remember it. Knitting, spinning, weaving and the general friendly and open Canadian way of life. Not that I don’t like where I am living now. I do love it here enough to stay for the rest of my life. Reading your stories and daily blogging I still feel I have a connection to my upbringing. Also your blog makes me feel “normal” he he ha ha ho ho. Many Thanks from a displaced Canadian overseas :0)

  387. Happy blogiversary! I re-discovered knitting a couple of years after your blog started, but once I found you and joined the larger knitting world/community, I went back to the beginning and read every one of your posts. I now make sure to tell all of my friends to read you if they haven’t and I even have gotten my 81 year old mother to read your books (I haven’t gotten her to your blog yet, but now that she is living here in California less than 4 miles from my house I will try to get her to expand her reading horizons). I love your writing and I look forward to your continued knitting adventures. And hopefully I will get to see you in person again soon. 🙂

  388. I noted that you have no visitor counter, I avidly follow, said blog. I read it faithfully. I envy your talents, your personal growth, and your ability to enjoy every day life. Steph, grab hold hang on, soar just as you always have, continue to please the crowd. And, Thank You for sharing all that you love.

  389. Thank you for taking time out of your life to share with us. Happy Blogiversary, and many more to come.

  390. It’s been fun to be your “blog” I have all your books and more than one copy of some of them. My lend out and my own because someone may have it when I need it. ( and you were worried no one would buy them ) you’re also something my sister and I who live far apart have in common everyday. Kind of like we are both looking at the same moon thing. Thanks for the last 8 years!!

  391. Happy 8 years! The blog helped me learn about knitting in many aspects; my favorite of which are about how even good knitters make mistakes (even on basic garter stitch) and that this is perfectly ok.

  392. Oh baby! We love you, too! Congratulations and THANK YOU for giving me your blog to look forward to and to miss when there’s no news! Can’t tell you how much I love your writing and how refreshing you are!

  396. When I’m feeling unwell, or stressed, or just want a little relaxation, I often go back and read your blog from start to finish (while knitting, of course!). Your thoughtful and funny writing, coupled with lovely pictures of wool, fiber, beautiful shawls and sweaters are a treat, like a favorite book, or a delicious home-baked pie. Your blog inspired me to learn to spin, and to branch out into stranded knitting and lace. Thank you.

  397. Thank you for 8 wonderful years of blogging. You have enriched so many lives with your humor, your sensitivity, your sense of purpose. I look forward to many more years of blogging.

  399. Thank you Stephanie; I love being part of ‘the blog’. Thank you also for your charming, smart writing, and your validation of my enduring, intense love of knitting.

  400. A very Happy Blogiversary to you. The Blog is grateful for you as well; long may you post!

  401. Thank you so much for enriching my life in more ways than I can say (like so many others here!) And thank you for putting on the biggest party ever that gives me yet another excuse to visit my son in Portland!!!! Cheers and our very best to you!!!

  403. My daughter led me to your blog about 2 years ago, and I am so happy to have had you in my life.
    You brighten my day, your work inspires me, you make me laugh, and you are great company. Thank you so much for your humour and your occasional rants (most of which I agree with). I think the post that has stayed with me the sharpest was the one called “Enough”, for Christmas, was it last year?
    Long life to you and the Blog.

  404. That’s so odd, my favourite blog post is also “Enough” too – same as Tine above me! I thought of it the story this Christmas and it really keeps everything so reasonable.
    Happy blogaversary 🙂 Although as a massive geek “The Blog” sounded like “The Borg” in my head and now I’m imagining an army of mechanised knitters, which is sort if odd, but probably a potential Dr Who story… I’m rambling.
    Just to say, if you ever need a biochemist in an emergency, you’d have one of those too!

  405. I’ve been reading your blog now, for as long as I’ve been married (which turns out to be as long as The Blog has been in existence). It’s led me to create my own blog, which led to working in a yarn shop, taking on some private work, and now…pattern design! Your blog has inspired me to be bigger than I might have dared without it. I hope it continues to grow and prosper 🙂

  406. You have become part of my day- like a friend, and I do appreciate all the effort it takes to write a blog. My favorites through the years??- Hank tangling the ball winder, you redecorating your bedroom, trying to get Sir Washie out of the house and the new washing machine in. Most of all, I love knitting all the more because of you and I won’t hesitate to knit on the bus, in a ball game and in any line ups. Yay

  407. I’m a late comer to your blog, I’ve only been reading for about 2 years. My life has been fuller since an instructor at a local yarn shop recommended your blog. Witty, informative, and so entertaining. Plus a wealth of patterns, techniques, and inspiration. Keep up the good work.

  408. Wow, I got all teary – and it takes a lot to make me all teary. I’m so glad that so many of us have taken such good care of you – you definitely take good care of us.

  409. Happy Blogiversary! When I was a new & naive knitter, I was in the bookstore and saw Knitting Rules. I picked it up, read a couple of paragraphs, and bought the book. I came home and devoured it. How naive was I? Well, I didn’t know who you were. I didn’t even know there were such things as hand knit socks. I didn’t know about good yarn, or Rhinebeck, or knitting groups. Through your book I found your blog. Through your blog I found Ravelry. Through Ravelry I found my knitting group. Now, I know about good yarn. Boy do I know about good yarn! Now, I have knitting friends. Now, if I had to make a choice about going to Rhinebeck or going to Hawaii, well, I’d pick Hawaii. I’m naive, not stupid. But I’d pick Rhinebeck over just about any place else. So, from the bottom of my hand- knit-sock-covered feet, thank you.

  410. In the same way you are there for “me” when I’ve had a really stressful day (I drive for a living!), THANK YOU for making me laugh and realize that, yes, things get better.
    I’ll be there for you too! Love you too!

  411. Yours was the very first blog I ever read and I’ve learned so much about knitting not to mention Canada. It’s been great and I’ve gone on to read many other’s blogs each day. Thanks so much for opening my world.

  412. Thanks for keeping us enabled (sometimes knee-deep) with knitting patterns, yarn and with the wonderful pictures of other knitters and their projects! Happy Blogiversary! You’ve become part of my day.

  413. All I can say is thanks! Your blog is a big part of my daily routine,and it never fails to make me see something in a new light.

  416. Thank YOU for sharing yourself, and helping me get the courage to try new things. I’m a better knitters and a happier person for it!

  417. Yours is the first blog I have followed regularly! You are so funny and smart and… you know it. I’ll be at Madrona and I’ll have some local amazing Porter and Stout for you! Cheers Stephanie, you ROCK!

  418. DITTO!!!! I look forward to each of your posts. Wisdom, humor and great humanity flowing out to all of us. Thank You. Oh happy day.

  419. We love you too. Thank you for showing me that being a mom of three girls and a knitter can be so awesome 🙂

  420. We love you too! Thank you so much for sharing your knitting life and your personal life with all of us.

  421. The spirit and nature of your posts are reflected in The Blog’s comments. Both are warm, funny, caring, generous, intelligent, supportive, inspiring and so much more. Yes, The Blog loves you and your family too.
    P.S. Thanks for introducing us to “kinnearing” and infinite squirrel stories. 🙂

  422. Stephanie, I am in awe of you and your all you’ve done for us as knitters. I’m putting you on a pedestal right next to Elizabeth Zimmerman and Barbara Walker. They taught us to knit, but you have given us a community. Congratulations on eight wonderful years,,,,,here’s to many more. (Give Ken a big thank you too.) 🙂

  425. “for giving me a world much bigger and wider than my own could ever be” is how I feel each time I read your words. I can travel to places I know I will physically never be, and find a place of comfort in knowing that someone out there shares my silly sense of humor, and knows what I’ve thought but dare not say about starting too many projects, turning into a crazy crafter at the holidays, etc. You share yourself and your world to the benefit of us all and we THANK YOU!!

  426. Thank you. I didn’t know what a blog was before I received your first book as a Christmas present. I barely knew what a yarn over was. I have been following you ever since and have become a better knitter because of the encouraging words you often send to “the blog”.

  427. I love you, too. Thanks for making knitting funny and cool and being the window into an incredible online community. My life would be quite dismal if I had not stumbled onto your Blog. Here’s to many more happy years.
    P.S. I am glad that you are safer now. I was worried about you and your family there for awhile.

  428. Happy Blogiverary, Stephanie!
    And you know what? The Blog loves you right back! Thanks for all that YOU have given us!

  429. Dearest Ms. “harlot” you are responsible for allowing me to get out of a serious depression. Also to tackle knitting things that used to scare the beegesis out of me! Now EVERYONE. Is asking me to make something and they actually wear it! I ACTUALLY WEAR WHAT I KNIT NOW!! You’ve done so much for so many! THANK U. AND CONGRATULATIONS,HERE’s To ANOTHER 8 Yrs!

  431. Happy anniversary! I only wished I knew about the blog when it started. I have really enjoyed it the last few years – there are days when your blog is the only thing I laughed about that day; it’s brought tears, and quiet reflection. thank you for sharing your life with us!

  433. And thank you right back. It’s the best sort of symbiotic relationship. Congratulations on eight years of terrific, valuable work. You have affected the lives of thousands of people — no small thing. Thank you for your knowledge, your sharing, your humor, your humanity. Every bit of it has been noted. Here’s to as many more years as bring you the satisfaction and pleasure that you feel today. Well done.

  434. People are wonderful, aren’t they? A very happy Anniversary to you, and to all of your lucky readers. Like any wonderful relationship, I wish it many more happy years.

  435. Thank YOU! Happy Blogiversary. (You should know that being part of The Blog is awesome too.) In our house, we refer to you as someone who might be right around the corner or waiting for us down at the pub. In a knitting crisis my daughter will say “What would Steph do?” when she was ten and would still go places with me we drove to Burlington to hear you read on a godawfully hot day and she was as captivated as I when you asked her to hold actual yarn and be in a photo. Thanks for sharing with all of us.

  436. Happy Blogiversary Stephanie! I’ve enjoyed reading your blog for 3 years now and have enjoyed it immensely. Wishing you many more years of blogging!

  437. As I sit here with a miserable cold and a mug of Emergency Soup, having just ordered the pattern and some yarn to make my daughter Kate Davies “Owl” after she saw Meg’s, I can honestly say you’ve become a good influence on me. and I thought I was above the influence.

  438. Stephanie…thank you for giving me somewhere to turn for a good laugh(and sometimes a cry). And just when I think no one can improve on something as simple as a pair of mittens…along comes Cloisonnée…May you enjoy many more years with The Blog..Pat

  439. As a more recent responder, let me just add my Yippee! and Congratulations! Thanks for adding warmth and humor and humanity and fun–oh, yeah, and some knitting stuff, too!–to my life. May there be many more years of blogging to come.

  440. How can it be eight years?
    Thank you for sharing yourself and family with us over the past eight years. It’s been wonderful!
    Michele

  441. Congratulations. Thank you to Ken. I love your writing and your heart for people and craft. I look forward to many more blog-years.

  442. Happy Blogiversary! I can’t wait to read what is going on in your world everyday. You’ve taught us, enlightened us, shared with us, and become a part of our little world no matter where in that world we are. Thanks for sharing 8 years of adventures with us. We (THE BLOG) look forward to many more. Thanks for being there Stephanie.

  443. Yay for The Blog!!! I’m so glad that thanks to The Blog (and your books & writing) I got a chance to meet you on your visits to Texas. I still am plotting to make it to Toronto some day soon, and I look forward to seeing you there too!

  444. Happy Blogiversary, Stephanie. Thank you for sharing your family, your humor, your talent with us, and making us feel like one big family. I always look forward to news of Joe, the girls, your extended family and friends. Also, thank you for making this little fiber “obsession” seem normal (lol).
    Obviously I’m not the writer you are–everything I want to say sounds so sappy. But Happy Happy, and I wish you many more years of great blogging and writing.
    KatyaR, Oklahoma City

  445. Thank YOU for helping me relax and not take my knitting so personally. Sometimes it just does what it does, and that’s ok. Thank you for wrapping us all into your life!

  446. Happy Blogiversary!!! I remember when I first stumbled across your blog when I was a beginning knitter. You have helped me and inspired me to learn more and try new things. Thank you so much 🙂 <3

  447. No, thank you, Stephanie, for first sharing with us on the Knit List and then here and now in your books and in person when we are lucky enough to be where you are speaking or teaching. Thank You.
    Sara

  448. Eight years online is the equivalent old beyond the dinosaurs in the physical world. To sustain a blog for that long takes a lot of passion and fortitude and love. Many congratulations!

  449. Thanks so much for years of letting all of us know how important the community we have created with you at its helm is to everyone. Thanks for letting us know it’s OK to make mistakes, even expected! I have grown so much as a knitter and more important as a person from reading your wonderful posts. Congratulations, here’s to many more years together!

  450. Thank you, Stephanie! You make my day. May you blog for many, many more years to come.

  451. I can honestly say you’ve changed my life, too. I only regret that I missed the first 6 years of The Blog, but I’m here now!
    Were the states you mixed up North & South Carolina? My sister-in-law landed in the wrong Greenville one time.

  452. My dear friend and college roommate, Cathy, got me started reading your blog. Every year when we have our annual college roommate, reunion weekend, one of the things we always talk about is “The Blog”. It has brought us together, it has kept me knitting, it is amusing and engaging and poignant. THANK YOU Yarn Harlot!!!

  454. Happy blogiversary! 😀 I picked up this blog in the past year, but I’ve actually read through the entire archives (I had a lot of free time at work at one point). I’ve learned a lot about knitting and fiber, and I love getting to know, through your blog, a Real Live Awesome Knitter (I don’t know many other knitters where I live). I’m thrilled that you’re getting to live the knitting-and-writing dream.
    Also, I think you’ve effectively sucked me into the world of spinning >.< I haven’t started yet, but I’m making plans…

  455. Congratulations on 8 years of helping knitters of every level of experience remember that no one is perfect! I thank you, the squirrels thank you, and all of The Blog thanks you!
    PS: Did Millie ever get her feet warm, or do you still have the thermostat set at “nearly Arctic’?

  456. Happy Blogiversary! In some ways, Stephanie, The Blog has been responsible for some major life changes for me. Avid knitter and spinner that I am, I was further encouraged by your experiences in the knitting world to finally turn my creativity into a brand -new career in a LYS, where I find myself surrounded by yarn and knitters ( I was a nurse, but this is more fun )! Thank-you, and keep blogging!

  457. Thank you for all your efforts to create the blog. It adds more to more lives than I’m sure anyone can even imagine. Your writing skills are a true gift. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to many more years (I hope). Happy Blogiversary!

  459. Thank YOU! I have shared your wisdom, advice and mothering tips with many knitters and non-knitters. Tho,I rarely post, I’ve been with you the whole 8 yrs. and continue to enjoy everything you write and have all of your books!! Keep on keeping on!

  460. Happy Blogiversary! Thank you for sharing your life and experiences with us. As I was reading, I was so worried this was a thank you and a good bye. I’m so glad it isn’t. One of my favorite things is to check in and see what you are up to. Congratulations!

  461. Thank you Stephanie!! I read your blog daily…looking forward to my dose of knitting humor! Without knowing it, you have comforted me after the passing of my husband and I thank you! You helped me find comfort in knitting and even frequently made me laugh out loud! It has now been 15 months…and although the grief is getting easier to manage, I still look forward to my visits with you and The Blog! Thank you from the bottom of my yarn stash!

  462. Thank YOU Yarn Harlot for making me feel connected to other people who love what I love. You are amazing!

  463. Awww… I am afraid of the day when I will have read all the past entries of the blog. They sustain me when you can’t write daily due to Life happening. Thanks also for introducing me to other bloggers and other knitters! 🙂

  465. Thank you too Steph…for sharing…you. We love you back…
    A Tiny Part Of The Blog In Shelton CT

  466. I love you too Steph-your books, your blog, and your voice in my head when my knitting turns out to be crap!

  467. We love you, too! We’re there for you. When I speak of your blog, I call you my friend. It’s not just easier, it’s the truth.
    Glad you learned so much. You are my favorite writer (particularly the second to the last chapter in the last book). Good writing is easy to read and leaves you thinking.
    You’ve taught so much, and it isn’t all about the knitting. There is so much more. But the knitting is really amazing, inspirational and empowering.
    So thank you (and Ken) for this wonderful gift.

  468. We love you, too! I’ve enjoyed you writing “The Blog” for about six years. Thanks for the humor, the good advice, making knitting a “now” thing to do and sharing your life and family with us. I have all your books and even got to meet you at a book signing in Arlington, Virginia. I feel like I have a friend in Canada and you have friends all over the world.

  471. I’m very grateful to you, too, and if I can ever help you, I most assuredly will. Lots of love back and thanks for Knitters Without Borders.

  474. Happy anniversary Stephanie!
    I can’t tell you how many of your entries made me laugh when I needed it and made me cry when I needed reminding of what’s important in life.
    Keep it up!

  475. Another beautiful post! I did not read any of the 400+ comments but I’d like to say thank you…as I’m sure most of the other commenters did.
    Thank you Stephanie for including us in your incredible life! I love you, too.
    Mona

  478. The excitement that built higher and higher around the first Sock Summit fanned my flames of interest in dyeing yarn. Thank you so very much – I couldn’t be happier!

  479. Alas I found your little book “Wisdom for women who knit too much” in a used bookstore (being a used bookstore owner myself, the man gave me the book). I can honestly say it changed my life! I was just starting to knit again after a few years away and suddenly my world began to grow. I found a local knit group, learned about Ravelry and went back to day one of your blog and read straight through. You are special to me and I am glad to be part of your life as well. Congratulations!!

  480. Thank YOU, Stephanie. You have brought so much joy to my life, along with some great knitting inspiration. Congratulations on this wonderful milestone!

  481. I’m sitting here with tears in my eyes after reading what you wrote today… That you were thanking us. I wish I could tell you what your writing means to me. In 2011, my only grandchild was taken from our lives by the baby’s mom… My precious mother-in-law died in November… And my middle son died unexpectedly in December. Through it all, your writing has brought me joy and laughter. Your photography always brings me enjoyment as I recognize that you too see beauty through a camera lens. Most people take a picture – you capture so much more… And that is a special gift. Saying thank you to you for how you enrich my life is not adequate, but I have no better words, so I hope “thank you” will do.

  482. oops. Make that “Meditations for Women who Knit Too Much”….althought there is a fair amount of wisdom as well!

  483. Happy blogiversary, Stephanie. And I believe I can speak for the entire Blog when I say, just as we have become a part of your world and your reality, you have also become a part of ours. My family members know who “Stephanie” is because I have mentioned you to them so often – maybe something of yours I had read in one of your books, maybe an idea you had or a recommendation you made regarding a pattern we both knitted (ahem, Tulip baby sweater), and of course there was the time I actually MET you!!!! and you signed your book for me in 2008. You are like a distant cousin who is a beloved family member, even though rarely/never seen. We love you back, kiddo. We do. Lots.

  486. Happy Blogiversary!!!!
    Thanks for writing I’ve really enjoyed reading them over the years. One of the very first blogs I read was about your crazy backyard squirrels and how they would steal your wool for their nest I was laughing so hard I was crying!
    Thats when I was hooked!
    I love to check in everyday and seeing what new thing you are knitting or what the girls are up or even how Mr. Washy got out of the basement 😀
    Keep writing and we will keep reading,
    Much Love and Continued Success

  487. THANK YOU for your wonderful blog!!!!! I have learned so much from you and love reading your blog. I look for it every day and am disappointed on those days you don’t have time or energy to blog. I love your books and have every one of them. Happy Anniversary; keep up the good work!!!!!

  491. Your sentiments were lovely!! I think you have to be a blogger to understand the love affair we carry on with our blogs.
    Thanks for the candidness and humor you gift us with every time you post!

  492. WOW!! Major Congratulations….8 years!!!
    In our home, it is what did “the Yarn Harlot” say today??? MY DH [Joe] loves the Blog posts that I share with him. [I had to show him the one with all of your needles!!!!!! The pictures that showed your double points on the table. He was impressed. Then, I showed him mine. I have some serious catching up to do.]
    When you responded to a comment that I once made, I couldn’t even open the email without him standing beside me. It was one word: Groan.
    And it hasn’t been deleted to this day.
    Way to go, and good luck to the next 8 years. We’ll be reading.

  493. One thing I love most about the Blog is that it has indeed taken on a life of its own, in the comments. It is here that we reply to “soandso at xx pm” – because it is a friendly place, and it would not be here if not for you. Thanks.

  494. Happy Anniversary!!! You have made me smile and laugh out loud more times than I can count. Thank you!

  496. Thanks for caring and thanks for sharing! I haven’t been here the whole 8 years, but I have been around for at least 3 of them and I can’t tell you how I look forward to it! Keep it up and we’ll be here waiting to read it.

  497. Congratulations and thanks a million from me too! If only you knew how many times I have laughed out loud , had tears in my eyes or just said “Awwww sweet” out loud!!!

  498. Congratulations and THANK YOU! You are an inspiration and one helluva funny lady. It is because of you that I decided to know how to knit, and knit well, by my 40th birthday as a gift to future me. You rock. 🙂
    ~Jenn in Forest Grove

  499. Adding my congrats, and what they said—thanks so much for the laughs, tears and inspiration. I’m happy to express my appreciation for all you give to us. I buy your books and patterns, and now it seems a fitting time to commit to $10 per year of the Blog for a total of $80 for MSF.

  500. Thank you for broadening my horizons and opening windows and doors to creativity. Because of you I have returned to the tradition of giving Christmas gifts made by my hands with stitches of love and prayers in each one. Keep up the good works and continue to spread the JOY!

  501. Thank you for broadening my horizons and opening windows and doors to creativity. Because of you I have returned to the tradition of giving Christmas gifts made by my hands with stitches of love and prayers in each one. Keep up the good works and continue to spread the JOY!
    Vallejo, CA

  502. Congrats on 8 hilarious, heartfelt, years. You’ve built such a beautiful community here. Thanks so much for continuing to be it’s caretaker!

  503. I LOVE the fact that you call us The Blog. In fact the entire time I was reading this post all I could think of was…
    We are the Blog. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.
    Happy anniversary!!

  505. Thank YOU, so much!! Happy blogiversary, and here’s to many more. My day is always brightened when your posts show up in my feed, and I feel my life is richer because of your writing – here and in your books. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Stephanie!

  507. I could write a similar list for what your blog has done for ME, so thank you very much for continuing to write it!

  508. When I found you and your blog seven and a half years ago, I was on the verge of giving up on knitting because I didn’t have any friends who knit (heck – I didn’t even *know* any other knitters) and so I nearly quit but discovering you and The Blog was like stumbling upon a ready-made community of fellow knitters. (a community that ultimately gave me the courage to seek out real life friends who knit!!)
    You are an inspiration and a friend. It has been such a joy to “know” you and to see you and your family and your career grow over these years. Thank you for all you do, especially for including each of us individually and all of us collectively, into your life!

  509. I can just repeat: Thank YOU! As the Blog is in your live, you are in ours/mine: can’t count how often my sentences begin with: “you know, this canadian blogger I told you about says….” It is inspiring to see/ read how you get new ideas and do new things. Like my great mentor from university days you show that it is possible to build your working live to something which suits you. Of course it is not easy but with ideas, ideals, energy, courage it can be done. Thanks for showing that to me!

  510. Thank you for being there and posting on The Blog! You’ve cetrainly brightened up my day on several occations with your funny, witty, silly and serious writing. You’re fab. 🙂

  513. I put in on my Ravelry ‘about me’ awhile ago- I adore Yarn Harlot for normalizing fiber and knitting obsessions! It’s true- you make my day!

  514. I’m very glad on a regular basis that you write. The blog and your books often help me turn a horrible day into something I can laugh about. And I regularly recommend your books to friends, and quote from your “knitterly wisdom”! Keep up the great work!

  516. Many happy anniversary wishes to you!
    And many thanks… the Blog is often a place I turn to when looking for inspiration and a few good laughs. And i love those moments when I’ve read a post or a comment and thought “me too!”. Learning that so many of us share a little (or a lot?!) through knitting has been an invaluable learning for me. Thanks to you & thanks to the Blog!

  517. I found “The Blog” a couple of years ago, an infant knitter looking for information and help on the web, and have been an avid follower since. I’ve tried charts, I’ve tried lace, I’ve become addicted to socks, I’ve bravely thrown my knitting into a full sink to block it properly. I’ve laughed, I’ve cried, and I’ve learnt. Thanks for all those things.
    But there’s something else, which it looks like no-one else has said. The donations to Medecins sans Frontiers. Over $1m, and still counting. You did that – you and “The Blog”. What an amazing thing that is. You should be truly proud.

  519. Thank you for making my life more knitty. And helping me stand up to bullies (gauge and laptops).

  520. Happy Blogiversary! For fun, I went back to 1/23/04 to read your first entry (a preview of the wonderful sense of humor that would unfold). I marveled that you had less than 20 comments per post in those early days and now just one post generates HUNDREDS of responses. Thank you for sharing your stories with us.

  521. Thank you, Steph, for the many, many, many hours of enjoyment, laughs, tears, and smiles. Here’s to (at least!) another eight years.

  523. “And in the end,
    the love you take
    Is equal to the love you make.”
    Thank you. For the 8 years of laughter, tears, and wisdom.

  524. Happy Blogiversary! I always know I can come here for some sort of wisdom or laughter, so thank you, too!

  527. Thanks so much for all the wonderful blogs. I’ve shared laughter and tears with you and gone on so many amazing knitty journeys. Here’s to another eight wonderful years!

  528. Steph, Of all the people I have never met, you have influenced my life the most. I have learned many fibery arts, like sock knitting and spinning, felting and weaving, and have adjusted my life to these arts without guilt or saying “should I?”. Of all the people I have never met, I believe that if you and I sat at a table with beer or tea, we could have a great conversation about politics, kids, life convictions and the latest dye lot from Tina. My spare time, my spare rooms, my spare cash have all been influenced by you. Thank you.

  529. Stephanie,
    We have never met but it seems like we have. When you say eight years and I count back I realized I’ve been part of the blog almost since the beginning. Who knew? I thought you’d been doing this for years already when I found you. Thanks for all the laughs and also for all the reality checks, aka “oh, this stuff happens to other people too!” I’m so glad to be part of the blog and thank you for having me.
    Sue

  530. It was only about two years ago that I stumbled across your blog… I had just begun knitting and was looking for something to read that went along with my new, growing interest. What I found here was oh so much more. You have invited all us readers into your life in ways I never predicted and often have found myself inspired and amazed… And those were often the posts with no knitting!
    You’ve given me hope when a project has gone horribly awry, given me the fearlessness to try new things (it’s just yarn… The worst that happens is you have to pull it out and start again! Oh, if only all of life’s problems could go that way), and I have to admit… You might be the reason I start spinning.
    Thank you, Stephanie. Here’s to many more years of blogging!

  531. Thank you for writing. Your blog is a shout of validation for all the times I sneak off to knit just a bit more. Happy 8 year sand here’s to more!

  533. We love you, too, Stephanie. Thank you for being my introduction to the wonderful world of knitting blogs. I started reading around the time you lost the good Sir Washie, and I’ve read all the archives.
    Thank you for helping me realize that other people, really cool people, also stress about what other people think and find it hard to believe in their own awesomeness.
    Thank you so much for helping me adjust to being a mom. I know you’ve helped a lot of women do that in person, but you helped me too. In July of last year you wrote that all you had to do to reach your Tour de Fleece goal was “carry on without quitting” and gave some examples of how that’s exactly what mothers do all the time, so you knew you could reach your goal. In September I gave birth to my daughter and “Carry On Without Quitting” became my mantra though all the sleepless nights and craziness of the first several months. It really meant a lot to me. Thank you.
    Happy Blogiversary. I’m so glad you’re here.

  534. And I love you back.
    Thank you for eight years of your wonderful writing, which has enriched my life in so many ways. Whatever subject you write about, you always make me more thoughtful in the process. Thank you for introducing me to the joys of sock knitting. Thank you for explaining stashing and S.A.B.L.E. Thank you for extending the book tour to the UK that one time so that I could come and hear you speak.
    Happy blogiversary.
    – Pam

  535. The BLOG truly appreciates you too, Steph! Thank you for your writing… and happy eight years!

  536. We love you back! Thank you, and happy blogiversary to you! You helped me justify my yarn stash to my DH, and anyone that can do that, plus like Stargate(s)is okay in my book.

  537. Congratulations, Steph. And thank you right back, for giving me so much of the same.
    You friend in Blogness and knitting and motherhood and life and everything else..maybe someday in person..
    Mariliyn

  538. You’ve enriched all of our lives over these past eight years, from your insights and tips, to your photos and candid conversations. I’ve learned so much about many things from you, not the least of which is knitting 😛
    Thank YOU, from the Blog! We love you back!

  539. As a member of “the Blog” for some years, I must say thanks and we love you more than mere words can express. Which is why we’re there for you when you need us, and why your posts & books are so very appreciated. Thank you, thank you and Amen.

  540. Thank you for being you. You have made knitting fun and helped me enjoy it more that I ever would have if I hadn’t discovered your blog..

  541. Happy blogiversary and thank YOU, Yarn Harlot! I refer to you as my knitting hero, but you’re an all round inspiration really. Through you I’ve learnt loads about the fibre arts, but on top of that I’ve experienced your life experiences and learnt from them just as much, and I’ve also been privy to some very interesting debates over the most serious and the most amusing of topics. I’m so pleased you’re you and you choose to share yourself and your family with us, and although I’m usually pretty silent in the comments, I’m very proud to be a part of The Blog (it’s like the knitting equivalent of The Force) 🙂

  542. Thank YOU for lifting me (us) up on so many days! Happy Blogiversary and may there be many more. Love you much!

  543. We love you too. Thank you for the laughter, the tears, the advice and the joy. It’s more than just knitting, knitting is the thread that keeps us together. You have made me a better knitter, and that skill gives me more joy than I can express, so thank you, thank you, thank you. Happy Anniversary.

  544. And thank you. It is through your blog that I discovered Blogdom. And through you that I got re-involved with knitting, which I had put away for 20+ years while I brought up my daughter. And through you that I found RAV & new friends & inspiration. You have changed my life tremendously for the better, my Friend.

  545. Lurker Alert: I had to come out from behind the virtual bushes and say Happy Blogiversary! I’ve been desperately trying to catch up with the past eight years of your blog (having read all your books and now being constitutionally incapable of making it through a day without constant fixes of Yarn Harlot, eight years of blog is heaven) and have gotten used to not commenting (since commenting on a post from 2007 is kind of… well, pointless…).
    THANK YOU for sharing so much of your life and being so open with all of us. You’re like a part of my family now – as in, I tell my husband, sisters, and mom, “HAHAHA! Guess what happened to the Yarn Harlot!” or “The Yarn Harlot said the most amazing thing…” Initially they looked at me like I was crazy but now they (at least pretend to) accept it (kind of like my constant knitting on ‘pointless’ items like socks…).
    I just realized I sound like a crazed cyber-stalker. Erm. Sorry…

  546. What a weird world, where I feel like I know you intimately – I love your gift of words and the way you use them. I love your gift of sharing our mutual knitting passion. I feel like I almost know your family, and yet – you have no idea who I am. It’s an amazing technology, and I thank you for being a part of my every day that I look forward to!

  547. I just started knitting again last year after many, many years of non knitting. Found your books and blog and both have been a great help. Love your sense of humor!
    Have a wonderful day!

  548. Bon anniversaire Stephanie ! And thank you so much for the inspiration, the teaching, the encouragement…and your wonderful writing style.

  551. Your blog has helped me get through some rough times; it has made me believe that I am a knitter even though I pretty much only knit scarves; your humor has lightened my days…it is I who must thank you for letting me share parts of your life.

  552. Right back at ya, Stephanie. I’m pretty sure I joined The Blog near the beginning, and it’s been a part of my morning ever since. I’ve learned a great deal, including a love for knitting which led me into a love for spinning and weaving. Those things are such a HUGE part of my life now, I can’t imagine ME without them. Thanks for always being here. Semper Fi!

  553. Happy Blogiversary! Thank you, for writing and knitting and making me laugh and cry when I needed it, for making me think, and for sharing your life.

  554. Dear Stephanie: Thank you so much for your efforts with the Blog. You singlehandedly gave me back the joy of knitting. I had gotten away from it for a while but when I found your Blog, I was so excited and inspired again about my knitting. I follow your Blog faithfully. I think you are a joy and such a very spirited and talented person. I went back and read every single one of your Blog entries and hated to see it end. Thank you so much for being STEPHANIE and for all you have shared and taught. Sheila

  555. Congrats on eight years of blogging bliss (well, mostly… but that could be anything (the mostly bit), including marriage, children and pets).
    I hope the next eight are as much fun and excitement.

  556. Happy Blogiversary! While I didn’t start reading until a few years ago, I did go back and read what I missed. Over the years, you’ve given me some much needed laughs, some things to ponder, and some things to be indignant about. For that I say “Thank You”. I still can’t knit, but knitting lessons are not what I keep returning for.
    And regarding all the things The Blog has taught you in return – “You’re Welcome”.

  557. Congratulation on 8 years of this awesome blog. Thank you Stephanie for being part of my life and entertaining me for the past 4 plus years. Wished I would have started reading your blog from the beginning, but at least I found you when I did. Sometimes I feel like I am part of your family while reading your blog, it makes me feel all warm,cozy and loved.

  558. Happy Blogiversary! I had to read this three times to be sure you weren’t saying goodbye. Scared me! I am, like all the others, addicted to your blog. But more important, I too feel you and I are friends. I think about you and your family often and wish you well biking through the streets of Toronto with a basketful of yarn. Thank you for the blog!
    Lily

  559. Dear Yarn Harlot,
    Thank you for the laughter, the observations, and the wisdom that comes from living a knitter’s and spinner’s life. You arrived at a time when we were seeking a muse that was one of us — who spoke our language and experienced our fibery triumphs and failures. You inspired us to do great things, to love ourselves for the crafters we are, and to laugh at our foibles.
    You are a blessing. Thank you for all you do.

  560. The Blog Thanks You T00!! On a sad day I have read your blog and been able to laugh when I thought I never would again. We love you too.

  561. Thank you,Stephanie. Your blog is part of my morning routine and I love it. Because of your blog, I have seen you in Seattle 4 times and love it every time. Thank you for being here for us.

  562. Happy 8 years! You have The Blog and I have the YarnHarlot, who I know gets me and my quirky craftiness because I’m just like her in lots of ways even though I’m totally different than her too. The parts of you that you give us are such a gift! BTW, I would l♥ve a Harlot cook book next.

  563. I stumbled on to your blog when you wrote about the squirrels stealing your roving, Ha, someone w experience about real life. (who expects an animal to guard his stolen stash w/ as much passion as his nut cache)
    I bought two of your books, I’ve dog-eared them both, they have been a lifeline through some really rough patches that life has thrown at me.
    Thank goodness there are REAL people that have as much MATH skills as I do “Fudge it and see if it fits.” Math and I are not friends.
    When I saw the creative solutions you pulled (fixing the the cable that crossed in the wrong direction while on a book signing tour.) WOW!!!! I am in awe!!!!
    I laugh when I see your tweets, because you are a real person dealing w situations that messy life throws at you. ( taking your blouse off to get the suitcase; I thought that was funny, taking advantage of a man’s distractive nature.)
    I hope and pray that you have more BLOGGING years ahead. You have saved my sanity and sense of humor
    so many times. Thank You, Thank You
    Jenny T So. CA.

  564. Thank YOU! for sharing, for your transparency, for your honesty and your boundaries. I’ve enjoyed reading and while I cannot imagine that you will get this far down the list in comment reading: I am so glad that you continue to blog.

  565. I know some you have had a definite impact on my life because at Christmas my daughter asked me what I wanted. I said go and ask the Yarn Harlot, she knows! I’ve enjoyed it all from you in the elevator in shoes and a towel to the lost needle behind your ear. Good stuff!
    Thank you for sharing your gift.

  566. They say that good things never last. Well, this blog is proof that great things do last. Happy blogiversary!

  567. Love you, Too. You have made me a more adventurous knitter, made me laugh right out loud, sometimes made me cry along with you, and made me sometimes sit back and really appreciate what goes on around me!! Thanks for sharing 8 years of your life!!

  569. Wishing you a Happy Blogiversary Stephanie or in the words of my 3 year old granddaughter when she was wishing my husband & I a Happy 40th Anniversary said “Happy Misery” Out of the mouth of babes!
    Glad to hear that through the years there hasn’t been too much misery imparted onto you by THE BLOG!
    Thank you in return.

  570. I virtually love you too! I cannot count the number of days when I have needed some uplifting of my own and there you are right here on The Blog! You say things that I wish I said. You say funny things! You tell of the interesting people you meet and the situations you find your self in. Often times thoughtful. Often times funny. Best Wishes and a virtual Hug on your blogiversary!

  571. Happy Blogiversary! Your words are such a wonderful part of my life – letting me know that there is a kindred soul out there who is a mom with a life and that life includes a daily dose of fiber. 🙂

  572. Wow! Has it really been EIGHT years!?
    I’ve been reading you since before the blog – remember the incident when you were ice-skating and knitting? – and you have always brought a smile to my face. And made me think. About lots of things that need thinking about 🙂
    You have given back 8-fold what the blog has given you – thank YOU
    Here’s to the next 8 🙂

  573. It’s a privilege and a pleasure to share some small corner of your world from afar. BTW, this is one of your finest pieces yet; you have a true gift.
    Raising a glass to you from afar with best wishes for a happy blogversary and many more. (Thanks, Ken.)

  574. Thanks for sharing so much of your life with us over the last 8 years!
    We love you, too, and hope you continue to share the laughter and the tears – and the spinning, yarn, and knitting, too. Happy blogversary!

  575. How fortuitous that I peeked back here today — for the first time in over a year! Happy blogiversary. I have fall off reading blogs with the advent of Facebook and Ravelry. But your post today captures perfectly why blogs are still so important — and why I should get back in the habit of reading them. Carry on!

  576. One always worries when a blog post starts out like this one that it’s going to end in Good-bye. Okay, maybe not everyone worries, but I did. So glad that was not the case. Reading your writing–whether in the blog or in your books–helps me to feel connected, learn about knitting, the world, being a parent. Like a good friend, we don’t always have to agree. But we do understand and connect.

  577. Thanks for the eight years Stephanie, have been readying “our” blog for about 6 of those. Look forward to it every day. There are only two blogs I have to look at every day for new posts, “ours” and “dailypuglet.” Found out about you from your first book, have been hooked (needled?) since.

  578. Until you appeared, who knew that knitting could open the door to the Universe? Thank you and congratulations.

  579. Happy Anniversary!!! I would like to thank you! Your blog has helped me be more courageous in knitting and you’ve given me a laugh on some days when I definitely needed it! Keep on writing!!

  580. What I find astonishing is that the 506 people who have posted before me feel EXACTLY the way I do about you, Stephanie, and your blog.
    I think that’s because we all want to connect on a personal, real, honest level. Knitting is (almost) secondary to that.
    Thank you for being in my life.

  581. Thank you!!! I have been reading for about a year or so now and I always find it a joy to read what you write. (Including multiple times sharing out loud with my ever patient husband!) Although I normally lurk, today is one of those cruddy days and finding something nice to read always helps. 🙂

  582. You made me cry..again. You’ve made me laugh…alot. Thank you for the gifts you’ve given us over the last 8 years..I hope you continue to share for many, many more.

  583. Congratulations on your blogiversary! I’m a long-time reader, though usually a lurker.
    January 23, 2004 was a big day for me, too – my first child was born. I haven’t been reading since the very beginning (I was a bit busy that day), but my son was only a year old or so when I first found your blog and I was instantly smitten with your writing style.
    As a fellow Canuck and hippie-type mom, I identified with a lot of what you have written. I read and re-read the essay you wrote about your first child turning 18 and “He won’t be 3 (or 5, or 7) forever” has been my mantra and saving grace some days. I recently promised my son that his little sister won’t be two forever. It’s one of the only things I’ve been able to promise unequivocally.
    I thank you deeply for your wit, wisdom and wooly goodness.

  585. Dear Harlot,
    You are welcome. In return, I would like to say thank you for opening your stash and life to all of us. Your brave spirit is truly inspirational, even when it’s having a bad day. You are entertaining, funny, insightful, and brash by turns, and I for one have enjoyed being along for the ride (for the last 4 years). I look forward to more.
    Thank YOU.

  586. And thank you for being in my “virtual” life, I love your humour and talent, and I love even more that you share it with the blog.

  587. You have given of yourself. Thank you. You’ve been a great example to all of us – with good intentions and perseverance, much is shared, much is learned, much is gained. You’ve been a leader in your own style!

  588. Thank YOU Stephanie for deciding to do this blog and share yourself, your experiences, travels and family with us over the years. Thanks to Ken also for gifting you with the technology to make the blog happen. You have enriched our lives, become our virtual (if not real-life) friend and mentor. You have given us laughter and tears, and the ability to stretch our creative selves and take chances. This is a great blog and I look forward to reading each new entry, and re-reading the older ones. Thanks to you, through your blog, Doctors Without Borders has also benefited greatly, as have we, the Blog members. Thank you so very much.

  589. I too thank you for sharing your life with us. And I also have to thank Rams for inviting you to stop in her town for your first book tour. My daughter – who by the way is the same age as you, and lives in the same city as Rams, happened to read about you in their newspaper and purchased your first book as a gift for me. I’ve enjoyed your blog and all your books since.

  590. I ran across your blog in 2005, and it has meant an lot to me. You gave me much needed relief and humor through my husband’s deployment, when I was homeschooling four children without friends or family support. And I’ve appreciated your honesty and balanced perspective with those who have been mean and vindictive—as well as your kindness in so many other ways. If I may borrow the words of Sam in The Lord of the Rings—“You have shown your highest quality.”
    Thank you, Stephanie!

  591. Wow! What a wonderful and inspiring post. Happy Blogiversary! I have been reading you on and off for about 2 years. Now you make me want to open my blog to the world. But I am still afraid of those mean people you speak of. 🙂
    Love your blog completely! Please keep writing and we will keep reading and loving.

  592. Steph, I’d like to add my congratulations on your 8 year run. One of the things I love most about you is your humor and being able to laugh at yourself. My all time favorite post is the one where you were knnitting the shawl and cast on umpteen jillion stitches over and over and over because of mistakes. I laughed until I cried reading that.
    Thanks for sharing and educating and entertaining us all!
    Pat B.

  593. The thanks goes right back at you. There have been countless times over the last 8 years when your blog and your books have cheered me up (and sometimes made me cry), propped me up, made me laugh out loud, instigated various knitting projects and encouraged all of us to accept who we are.

  594. Thank you for sharing with us! It makes my day when I see you have a new post.
    You helped make me a social knitter. I was a solo knitter and didn’t realize what a knitting community there is. I was perusing in Powell’s Book Store one day and happened upon your book. Yes, a book about the life of a knitter, not just patterns! I joined a knit night, made friends, found that I live in one of the most knitter friendly cities in the world, Portland. The Sock Summits have been awesome, the flash mob, the world record! You have enriched my life in so many ways. Knitting isn’t just a hobby anymore, it’s a way of life. Thank you!

  595. We love YOU too! Although I can’t tell you how many times I read “The Blog” as “The Borg” in this post *lol*

  596. Love, love, love & happy blogiversary. I still get so much out of reading you all the time, even though I barely even knit anymore.

  597. Happy Happy 8th Blogiversary, Steph! I have been reading you forever – I don’t remember what it was but could it have been Live Journal or something. Anyway, have a great day and I hope to be reading The Blog for many, many years to come. Someday, I hope to have the pleasure of meeting you at one of your booksignings or functions. All the best to you and yours!

  598. Congrats Steph. The blog is my “go to” reading in the morning and your books (I’ve read them all multiple times)are often (sorry I can’t say always, you need to write more books) my bedtime reading at night. Thanks for everything. Beth

  599. And thank you for sharing with us! I’ve been reading for years, and I’m always curious what you’ve got on your mind to share with us 🙂

  601. In our knitting group we talk about you like a close friend! Love your wit and humor. Thanks for all the posts and books! I’ve been priviledged to see you in person twice. What a treat. We would love to have you come back to Atlanta!

  604. Aww, Steph…you bring tears to my eyes and hope to my heart. As a writer and a knitter myself, I’ve watched you blossom over the past seven years. I want to be like you when I grow up. And I can’t wait to see what you’ll do next. Happy Anniversary, Darling.

  606. I keep wishing you’d say that you were coming to England again, that you were wondering if just maybe someone on The Blog might live in Glastonbury, where you’ve always wanted to visit…. and then I could spring up and say, “Yes, me! I’ll collect you from the airport, bring you to Glastonbury, show you the sights, house you, feed you, knit with you…..!” and so on. (And now you’re going to be saying, where the heck is Glastonbury…?)

  608. And thank-you, The Blog, for becoming a part of our lives, you’ve been a daily part of mine for 7+ years, when I was a new-again knitter and newly single mum, you have brought me laughter, tears, wisdom and familiarity. Thank you, Steph, for continuing to put your heart on the blog and for being a part of our lives 🙂

  609. You do know that we LOVE you too. I hope you know it. I check in to see what you have to say every day. I believe you get the credit for turning me into a committed knitter. Or is that a knitter who should be committed? Either way, I hope you and the Blog continue for a very long and happy time.

  610. Thank you for the funny stories, the inspirational knitting and the history lessons on Canada. Love learning about Canada.

  611. Thanks Stephanie, it’s been a gift to me too. I didn’t even knit when I (accidentally?) stumbled upon this crazy place. It always makes me smile, and there have been times when I’ve really needed it.
    8 MORE PLEASE!

  612. Happy Bloggiversary, Stephanie and here’s to many more. I found one of your books when I was living in a town with more sheep than people in the area! This was before I could knit. A little push from my partner and your book gave me the confidence and inspiration to want to learn how to knit. A few years ago I found your blog. By now I was well and truly hooked! Between my partner, your books and blog I was inspired to grow from being a newbie knitter into a fully blown Knitter. Thank you!

  613. A belated Happy Blogiversary to you, Stephanie. Thank you for everything you’ve shared and for bringing us along on so many virtual journeys. Your blog has brought love, humor, understanding, and support to a world that sorely needs those things. And although it pales in comparison, it’s because of you that I’m finally learning to knit. If my first hat hadn’t come out slightly too small, I’d put it on so I could take it off to you :-).

  614. I often feel I should thank YOU for still letting us read your blog. It truly is a long strange trip, but it’s great to have such a cool traveling companion.

  615. I started thinking about how different my life would have been had I not happened across your first book, which led me to your blog. I have learned so much about knitting from you, but also about life. Thanks to you and your family for sharing your lives with us, and to your friends as well.

  616. And here’s to another 8 years–he says raising a glass of Merlot in the general direction of Canada. Keep blogging and writing. We love you.

  617. Happy Blogiversary, Stephanie!
    I discovered you only about 2 years ago but you are my go to when I need a knitting laugh. One of your books lives in my knitting bag to remind me “It’s only knitting.” Because of this pearl (pun intended) of wisdom, I have found courage (ok, inspiration) to try new projects…my daughter loves her warm, pink hat! Thank you for helping me rediscover knitting.
    Misti

  618. Happy Anniversary. You and your blog are a bright spot in my life… and thanks to you my knitting world has expanded and keeps doing so. You are funny and sensitive and kind and brilliant and more — an awesome human being and a superwoman knitter to boot. Here’s to many more blogging years!

  619. Just a big THANK YOU to the chorus already singing your praises. You make life better. Congratulations!

  620. Happy anniversary. And thank you for spending time with us. This world is better with you in it.

  623. Happy Blogiversary. We love you back. Thanks for allowing us/me to share your life. You’ve made me laugh and made me cry. I think of you as a friend – one that I see on the Internet and one that, some day, I would like to meet in the real world. After all, I live in Toronto as well.
    Have a great day and great year.

  626. I’m a new knitter and a new reader, but over the last three weeks I’ve read eight years worth of material, and I can’t thank you enough. I’ve been here a very short time, but I love you back! Thank you for sharing your life with all of us.

  627. Back at ya! When I read your first book I was not a Knitter but your writing inspired me to go for the capital “K”. Thanks

  628. HAPPY BELATED BLOGIVERSARY!! Thank you for all your help and support. With you I’ve found patterns and techniques I never would have learned about. You’ve helped me in SOOO many ways not just with knitting but also with laughing and crying. Thank you for letting us into your world.
    Laurie

  629. thank YOU, stephanie, for sharing your wise and oh-so-sane self with us. you’ve taught me about knitting, but you’ve also taught me about life.

  630. Happy Blogiversary! Thank you for sharing your world with us; you’ve delighted and inspired me more times than I can count. Here’s to many more years together. Cheers!

  631. Thank you! You’ve made be a Knitter (capital k) and I love every moment of it… Books, blog, patterns, laughter and tears. Thank you for sharing your life, loves, and talent.

  632. It is so very nice to receive a “thank you” and know that someone cared to send it. Your Blog thank you was special.

  633. YH-I have every book, seen you every time you are near to my home, read you faithfully. You add immeasurably to my life. You have taught me about the blogisphere. I love you too. thanks for being so courageous.

  634. Happy blogiversary. Thank you for 8 years of inspiration. I’ve been kick-started into trying many things because I saw it here. I know very few knitters so your blog, and the internet at large, have given me a group of peers that I can learn and be inspired from. And you know that if you’re ever in the Comox Valley you have a friend and a ride. I ‘m only 5 minutes from the airport. Cheers, Theresa

  635. Thank you for articulating things so well, knitting and non-knitting, and keeping a sense of humor in spite of it all. See you around.

  639. Stephanie, Thanks for all the inspiration you have given me. And you have made my world larger also, because many of your viewpoints are very different than mine, and they make me say, “ahhh, that is another way of lookings at it”. And thank you for inspiring me to knit fearlessly. I like hearing about your errors in knitting as much as your successes, because as the professional you are, and still doing “silly mistakes”, there is hope for me. Thanks again for bravely sharing your life with us and I hope to meet you in person someday to say so in person–with sock in tow. I wish you many more years of happy, thoughtful blogging…Rebecca

  640. Thank you for being the glue that brings so very many people together.
    You already know the amazing power that the The Blog has to contribute (due to *you*) and I hope you have the energy and heart to continue it for many years to come.
    Look at MSF and the remarkable donations that they’ve received – I think they can easily attribute a million USD+ in major part to your fundraising. That is an incredible impact from one single knitting blogger.
    You make a difference – a big difference. Carry on!

  641. Stephanie, your blog has changed my life too. I learned to knit because of your blog. I stumbled on it about six years ago and found your humor and your love of knitting and natural fibers irresistible. I picked up the needles and never looked back. I seldom leave home without knitting, the home office is now a “fiber studio” and I’ve had the opportunity to pass it on by teaching classes. Knitting is a true joy in my life and I thank you for the introduction. Thank you, thank you.

  646. Thank you for the blog. I only discovered it last year and have had, over the last few months, the pleasure of reading through the archives of your posts for the last eight years. Fabulous reading and I’m so glad you made the choice to blog and write your wonderful books. All the best to you from hot and sunny Perth Western Australia (where 40+ degree temperatures, with no air con at home is making me have to put down my knitting for a few days – devastating).

  647. right back at ya! your blog is my first internet stop in the morning! i always feel better after our visit. =]

  648. Well Thank You. I enjoy reading your words…why? You are funny, down to earth, real, I think I would love to be your friend.. I know creepy but it’s out there. Also your friends are amazing. They are intelligent, humorous, fabulous needle crafters and again people I would like to know. But I don’t so I look forward to reading your words everyday. A friendI haven’t met…..yet?

  651. Congratulations on making this a more pleasant world to live in, from Doctors Without Borders to friends for all us knitters and thinkers to an advocate for all kinds of us motley folks! I’d like to think we’re not only having more fun because of you, but also practicing and strengthening our compassion “muscles”! You go, Girl!

  652. Congratulations to 8 successful years and thanks for sharing laughter and tears, miracles and accidents with us.
    Cheers to many many MANY more years
    Maike

  654. Thank YOU! Your thoughts frequently make me smile and laugh out loud. I appreciate the time you devote to this media and your perspectives. You have inspired me many times to try something new. Keep the words churning!

  655. Thank You for the Blog. I’ve read every post, and I’ve enjoyed reading along on your journey.
    Best wishes for more Blogging goodness in the future.

  656. Happy Blogiversary! You help me every day. I love reading your blog. I love that things aren’t always perfect in your world – like mine. I love your knitting and your patterns. I love your travel. I have never had the opportunity but travel vicariously with you. I love your sense of humor. I love your blog. Keep up the great work. It makes by day so much better.

  658. We are the lucky ones, the ones who should be grateful, the ones whose lives you’ve enriched. Thank you for the laughs, the tears, the sighs of understanding and sympathy. Thank you for the inspiration. Thank you for the amazing expansion and understanding of Blogging as an art form and means of therapy!
    We all are looking forward to what’s next, what’s up, where will we go now? Keep it up, Ms. Steph. Thank you, and thank your family for letting us into their lives in a way that is probably far too personal and intrusive, but so very, very wonderful.

  659. Thank you for sharing your (knitting) life with us. You are a fabulous writer… I still chuckle over the coffee-making story! And I bought my first Stephanie pattern yesterday (the mittens). Thank you for all of it.

  660. Thank you for your efforts. Because of the blog, I feel a little less crazy and a bit more sane. Knitters are everywhere, but not necessarily in one spot. Thanks for providing a place for us.

  661. Thank you so much for your blog. I look for a new post every day. Congratulations on eight years. Here’s looking forward to the next eight.

  662. Stephanie, you are just AWESOME. I love you, The Blog, and your books. Congratulations and THANK YOU for giving me the courage (and humor :)) to be the boss of my knitting. Stitch on!

  663. as a member of “the blog”, a quiet reader, (and knitter – duh), I’m glad to be part of the “collective”. May we continue to help you as you have help us.

  664. Happy blogaversary! Thank you for the past eight years of stitches and yarn and smiles. Long may you blog!

  665. In celebration of your blogiversary, I share with you the true fact that on Jan 23rd I rediscovered my first copy of your first book. It was hidden in a project bag under a huge afghan I started 3 years ago & I had just purchased a 2nd copy last year because I had no idea where the first had gotten to! Now I have nearly finished the afghan AND I have two copies of your book! Life is better thanks to you 🙂

  666. What a wonderful thing to say! It is wonderful all the ways we have to learn and grow. happy blogaversary!

  669. Happy Blogiversary to you! You continue to be a kind, fun, loving, hilarious, genuine person that clearly demonstrates an amazing faith in humanity. That faith – and the choice you make to keep and use it – is a model for many of us. Thanks for the reminder to be grateful all the time, too; everyone needs that!

  670. Thanks for being there and sharing your thoughts with us. You have grown such a great community of knitters with your thoughtful words. You have really reached out and touched our hearts. For this we are forever greatful!

  671. We, The Blog, deeply appreciate your efforts over the years and are happy to have been able to share a part of your life. Happy Blogiversary!

  672. I don’t know if you’ll read all the way down to my post, but I wanted to make sure you understood the role you have played in my life all of these years as well…
    Your posts have taught me, centered me, made me laugh, made me cry, made me pause in my parenting journey, made me a more adventurous knitter, taught me to laugh at myself more often and given me a deeper appreciation for the addiction/sanity saver that is knitting in my life!
    I have sent your posts to my non-knitter friends and family on more than a few occasions as you’ve voiced things that I have felt deep down inside and you’ve been able to put into (eloquent) words.
    As a relatively new Canadian, you’ve helped me appreciate Canada for all it has to offer, and made me look around airport lounges and LYS in Toronto to see if you’re out and about.
    For sharing your life and wisdown and humor and charm with all of us, I am so grateful. And I sincerely look forward to meeting you in person one day.
    Keep it up! It makes each of my days a bit sunnier 🙂
    All the best,
    Robin

  674. Happy Blogiversary to you! You have meant the world to us, too. When I was newly back to knitting, and struggling, there were so many projects that you showed that inspired me to continue. Otherwise I may have stopped after my early hats & scarves, considering more complex projects too daunting. Sadly, I was not one who grew up with the craft. Since those early days I have tackled lace knitting with some degree of success, & am working on cables & color work now. I learned to spin. And as one thing leads to another, now I have a small sheep farm, which is the joy of my life. Thank you, Stephanie, for the inspiration, instruction & laughs.

  675. Right back at you! The Blog feels like you are our best friend, although we’ve never met you. The Blog celebrates your family events and milestones, even though we were not there. The Blog gets concerned when things cave in on you. The Blog checks in on you every day, just like a dear friend.
    The Blog is hoping for another eight years and more, right through the weddings and grand babies.
    The Blog wishes you continued success.

  676. You are very welcome. Thank you for all the funny and thoughtful words you’ve made time to share, and I should thank you for this post, cause I’ve been meaning to get my own blog going about living and knitting in Brazil, and I will take this as encouragement.
    Also, for the record, I saw your book in the first yarn shop I ever bought yarn in, when I was first learning to knit, and was told: ” Oh yes, she’s local, and she’s hilarious.” While you may no longer be local (okay, I’m not), I’m finding reading your latest book is a really nice taste of home here where it is hot and sweaty and the only thing falling from the trees is likely a coconut.

  677. No-Thank You for your whimsical, sad, and insightful look into the wonderful world of knitting these past 8 years. I hope there are many more to come…

  678. Thank you Stepahnie, for your blog, and for your books, but mostly for your humor about our mutual passion. Your thoughts and comments about knitting have improved the quality of my life and particularly my knitting in public. I know not to read your books in public because I would have to explain why I was laughibg so hard I needed to wipe my eyes, and only another knitter would understand.

  682. And thank you for bringing so much laughter, and tears into my life. For putting into words so many of the things I feel about yarn and life in a way I never could.

  683. And Thank You for letting me laugh outlound and into tears at some of those silly “things” I do as a knitter and yarn whore. You let me know I too am not alone and “YES” there are others who smell yarn, who will not buy yarn unless touched first, and who will buy yarn “just in case” it won’t be available in 6 years when I use up my stash!
    Please, give us another 8 years plus … I for one, will appreciate every word!

  684. Been thinking for quite a while and I can’t come up with anything original so a great, big DITTO to all the wonderful things everyone has written already.
    But to duplicate anyway, THANK YOU AND BLOG.
    (Lifting beer) Here’s to at least another eight years of togetherness.

  685. Thank you for being the antidote to the newspaper headlines. Knitting is why I started reading your blog, but your stories of life as a mom, wife, person who is trying to make good in life and can make us laugh with you thru the frustrations and joys, that’s why I stay. Best wishes for many more birthdays.

  686. It’s funny I avoid the comments section, a practice that keeps me sane when reading on-line journals or news sources, but perhaps I should read all of the Blog. I’ve always enjoyed your thoughtful and entertaining posts. Happy 8th anniversary!

  688. You make everyday that I come to work happier. Thank you so much for writing this blog, and inspiring to start my own. Knitters rule!

  689. Happy blogiversary. Thank you for making it possible for me to be part of the Blog. I love it. And you.

  690. Steph, it’s such great fun to read your blog, thank you for really bringing it. Happy anniversary, dear blogger!

  691. Congratulations and thank you. I found your blog in Oct 04, a month after my husband died. It was a difficult time and your blog took me out of my misery for a brief time every few days and brought me back to an old skill, knitting. Knitting then became, silly as it may sound, a reason to get up each day and see what you had written and knit. Eventually it led to meeting other knitters and new friends (and 3 sheep) and I guess , a new and different life. I ramble, thank you.

  692. Thank YOU Stephanie..the BLOG has saved my life on a number of occasions too, so remember that is is reciprocal in the hugest way! I would miss you terribly should the BLOG disappear, but then I would have your sompletely outdated (2010?)daily desk calendar advice to flip through, which I frequently do (because I need a LOT of help just to get through daily life). You are the virtual life line of the knitting universe! We love you!

  693. Love and thanks back to you. It’s been quite a ride so far. Here’s to many more years!
    -Francine from CT

  694. One of the (big) reasons why I love reading your blog is your approach to your audience. Through reading your blog and books over the years I feel like I have come to know you and can relate to you. Your wit and humor are addictive and I always look forward to reading your perspective on everyday knitterly life. You inspire me to write and knit. So no, thank you!

  695. Thank you so much, Stephanie! Eight years ago, I discovered you and your blog as a brand-new mother with rudimentary knitting skills and very little sleep. Reading here, I discovered a new passion and delighted in reading about your days as I rocked my boy on a pillow my knees. That boy is now 8 himself and went bowling for the first time tonight. I feel you’ve been a part of the journey, the whole way, so thank you.

  696. sending love and kisses from South Texas. I look forward to reading your blog. It makes me smile.

  697. aw there you go again, made me grin, made me chuckle, you have inspired, encouraged, helped, given, tried, warmed, touched and made me shed a tear or two. what a friend your are
    thank you

  699. No no…. thank YOU 🙂 I re-engaged with my knitterly self a little over a year ago and my knitting mentor suggested I read your blog and your books. I’ve nearly finished your books and I keep current on the blog (though quietly from here in Austin) and you are a wonderful part of my day and my life. I now mention you as a matter of course to all the new knitters I meet and make sure they know the Yarn Harlot. My single MOST important lesson I’ve learned from you is….there are NO knitting police….it’s JUST knitting 🙂 Thank you 🙂

  700. Happy belated blogiversary! I was just thinking your blog must be about 8 now. Soon it will be hitting puberty at the rate the years are going, and then will be all grown up and getting married.
    I’m now in Seattle. I feel I should go stalk Cat Bordhi.
    (and I’m not comment spam 😉

  701. I know I’m a bit late to the party, but happy belated Blogiversary, Stephanie
    As many others have said, Thank YOU, for sharing so many great stories and making us laugh. The blog loves you too.

  702. Just for goodness sake don’t stop! You are my go to when I need a minute away from the wonderful world of teaching teenagers Physics. Are you aware that most teenagers don’t want to learn Physics? Sometimes I need to knit –or if I can’t knit, just to read about knitting. The Blog is funny and sweet and thoughtful, and often about knitting. There aren’t many teenagers. It is rest. I have bought most of your books, so I have insurance aganst the day when you don’t feel it anymore –but I hope it’s at least eight more years. I should be able to retire by then.
    What–besides buying the rest of your books–can I do to pay you back? You’ll probably have to wait until I retire, but after that, Bob’s you uncle! Love you!

  703. Finally catching up on some reading…and there it went without comment: your blogiversary, which I celebrate with you, since I’ve been reading it since (almost) the beginning. It’s been a great ride, and I’m so glad you are still here to thrill us all. Congrats and I hope your vacation is fabulous (I read your entries from 2/4 back – I know, I’m a rebel!) Hugs from sunny Tucson

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