The afghan was nearly completed here – just waiting to add the fringe. Jazmine can purr-sonally attest that the yarn is ideal for making biscuits!

If you’ll recall, I made the hair-brained decision to crochet an afghan a few days before Christmas as a gift for my youngest son. I got the idea because he lives up North in snow country and I knew it would be the perfect gift to keep him warm during the frigid winter months. Since he also has a cat, I knew she would love the gift too. It was supposed to be a “quick and easy” pattern (6 hours or less from start to finish), but the directions I found online were horribly written and it ended up being a day’s long project with me worrying that I would not finish it in time.

Well, the good news, I did finish it and it came out beautifully! My son and his cat love the afghan and it makes me very happy to know he has something that was personally created just for him. I love homemade gifts – ever since I can remember I’ve either been crafting, sewing, cooking, or crocheting something to give.

Unfortunately those days of homemade gifts are nearly gone for me. Between time constraints and a million other mundane reasons, it’s nearly impossible for me to recapture what life used to be like. I guess the afghan made me melancholy, because it caused me to reflect on how much I miss some of my old life. I miss having my family around me on a daily basis, I miss knowing my neighbors, and I miss taking the time for some of the little things that bring joy to my life.

Not wanting to dwell on the negative, after all, I did make a promise to myself to make this year one of positivity and good intention, I decided to create a social family and neighborhood of my own that centered on some of the things that make me happy and are a relative constant part of my life – cats, crocheting, coffee, and chocolate.

Cats – check. Homemade afghan – check. Coffee – check. Chocolate – I’m sure it’s somewhere in the vicinity. Reading a book – bonus.

The idea came to me because I noticed many of my online peers, friends, and colleagues also shared some, or all of those loves on social media sites. There are specific pages devoted to each individual love, but I wanted one that embraced all of it in one happy and nurturing place and so I created a community page on Facebook for that purpose. It’s called “Chat’s Meow – Cats, Crochet, Coffee, and Chocolate” and I think of it as an online neighbor – a warm, fun, and safe place to share a cup of coffee, a glass of wine, some advice, a great recipe, an inspirational story or more with like-minded friends!

So whatever people want – as long as it’s positive and upbeat – I invite them to share away. Cute, warm, and fuzzy pictures and videos of cats. Favorite chocolate recipes or mouth-watering pictures of decedent deserts. Great crochet patterns or crochet questions or how-to tips. Conversation about cat books or cat trends. Cookbooks. Favorite coffee drinks. Giveaways and product reviews about cats, crocheting, crafting, coffee, or more.

Nothing is off limits and there is no judgement. Drink tea? That’s fine. Don’t like coffee or chocolate – that’s okay too. Or maybe you knit instead of crochet – all of that is fine. The page is not exclusive to cats, crocheting, coffee, and chocolate – those are just friendly guidelines. But honestly, I’d be hard-pressed to find someone in my circle that doesn’t like at least one of the four C’s!

Chat’s Meow is just a fun place to share conversation, ideas, and the good in life. The only request I have and I am firm on that, is that it’s not a site to promote stories about animal abuse or neglect. There are plenty of sites for that type of post. I just want somewhere we can go back to our roots – simpler times – back when borrowing a cup of sugar was common place.

If you’ve already joined the page, thank you so much! If you haven’t, here’s the link to Chat’s Meow. If you’re not on Facebook, maybe now is the time to join! You don’t even have to post pictures or share stories to participate – if you are too shy or nervous about it, you can just read everyone else’s comments!

Have a great Caturday everyone and what do you think about Chat’s Meow? Are you a knitter or a crocheter? Do you prefer coffee or tea?

I welcome your thoughts and here’s to continuing the year with love, peace, joy, and happiness.

If you enjoyed this post and are a cat lover and crocheter, please consider reading these other posts in which I share the topic in more detail:

It’s Almost Christmas so I Think I’ll Crochet an Afghan

Cats, Crocheting, and Reading… A Forever Calming Influence in My Life

Cats, Crocheting, and Computers – The New Neighborhood of my Life

Miss any of our posts this week? On Wednesday I shared what it’s like to be a cat in our house when we get to open the windows and on Thursday I explained why I refused to let my cats ask me a question for “Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day.”