About Me

Hi, I'm Rachel. Welcome to my About Me page. I'm a thirty something Canadian currently living in Ann Arbor, Michigan. I'm married to Joseph, an Evolutionary Biologist and together we have 3 kids. A daughter Calliope born in 2002. And two sons, Nova, born in 2006 and Floyd, born in 2013.
     I started blogging in 2009, as "Rachel's Quilts", as a way to share the quilts I made. I had an Etsy shop for a few years but found creating to sell took some of the joy out of making and closed it.
   

     I changed the name of the blog during the summer of 2012, to "Stitch 2, Write 1", to reflect my change in interests. In the fall of 2010, I started knitting again and fell completely in love with it. I love to knit socks, sweaters and shawls for myself and family and friends.
     In November of 2011, I decided to try and do NaNoWriMo - which is writing a novel or 50,000 words of one in a month. I did it and realized the dream I've had since I was a little girl of being an author was what I actually wanted to do for a job. Although I am currently unpublished, I am working on getting some poetry and a novel published.

     While writing keeps me busy, this blog will mainly share all the crafty adventures I have - whether it be knitting, quilting, crocheting or some other craft I try. I hope you enjoy reading this blog as much as I enjoy writing and sharing it with you.

   
 Want to know me even better? Here are lists of some of my favourite things. Enjoy.

Favourite writers and books:
      Margaret Atwood: "Surfacing", "Oryx and Crake", You are Happy" and "Power Politics" Or just about anything she writes.
      Jeanette Winterson: "Written on the Body", "Art Objects", "The Stone Gods"
     Carol Shields: "The Stone Diaries", "Swann", "Unless"
     Margaret Laurence: "A Jest of God", "The Diviners", "The Fire Dwellers"
     Dorothy Parker's poems and short stories
     L.M. Montogomery: Anne series - "Rilla of Ingleside" might be my favourite, "Kilmeny of the Orchard" "Blue Castle"
     Jane Austen: "Pride and Prejudice", "Sense and Sensibility", "Emma"
     Ami McKay: "The Birth House"
     Anne Michaels: "Fugitive Pieces"
     Emma Hooper: "Etta and Otto and Russell and James"
     Ariel Lawhon: "The Wife, The Maid and The Mistress"
     Meg Wolitzer: "The Wife"
     Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's books.

Artists I love:
     Vincent VanGogh, Picasso, Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassett and Frida Kahlo

Music I love to listen to:
     Ani DiFranco, Weezer, White Stripes, Kate Nash, Chad VanGaalen and Nirvana

Sports I love to watch (I don't really play any) - The Olympics, Tennis, Hockey, Football and Soccer.

Favourite TV Shows:
     "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Lost", Bob's Burgers", "Family Guy", Gilmour Girls", "Friends", "ER", "House Hunters"

Other Random Things I love:
     -the sound and smell of rain and thunderstorms at night
     -watching "The Pride and Prejudice" mini-series with Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy
     -sleeping in but also getting up early while most of the kids are still sleeping and having a cup of tea
     -swimming
     -my parents. I enjoy when they visit and even some of their advice.
     -midwives, home births and breastfeeding but I also support every woman's right to choose what is best for them and their family
     -chocolate

Interesting Facts About Me:
     -all 3 kids were born with the help of Midwives. 2 were home births
     - my husband and I went to high school together (he even played hockey with my brother) but we didn't start dating until 3 years after we graduated. We got engaged 2 months after we started dating.
     - I've been living in the U.S.A., since 2004 (Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti Michigan and Moscow, Idaho) but our hometown is North Bay, Ontario, Canada.
    - I like to swear
   - Sometimes I overshare