knitterofhats

Updated February 2024

I took a break in Jan and Feb 2022 due to some travelling and family time. Later in 2022, we moved to Maryland. We sold our old home and moved into another, six blocks from our son and his family. In 2023, we welcomed our first baby grand child, who joinef his older brothers (15 and 11). 2024: Ready to swap!

Hello! My name is Amy. I live in Virginia, just outside Washington DC. I live here with my husband of 30 years. In early 2017, we lost our furry son, a Bichon/Westie mix of 13.5 years, to lymphoma. We do have a human son, who is 26 years old. He lives on his own now and is working hard managing a local restaurant. We love our empty nest!

We missed our dog, so have begun to take in dogs for sitting via Rover. If you are new to Rover and need to use a sitter local to you, you can use our coupon code to save $20 on your first stay: EMPTYNESTPETHAVEN20.

On April 9, 2021, I retired from full-time work in nursing administration for several human services programs within our local government. In my spare time, I love to ride my bike around town and on the local trails, knit, watch Neflix and read/write pen pal letters. In September 2021, I took on part-time work in our local COVID vaccine clinics.

My husband and I volunteer in a peer ministry helping couples who are experiencing pain in their marriages. This program is called Retrouvaille. We highly recommend it because it saved our marriage. If you ever have questions about it, please let me know.

Now that I’m retired, we also deliver groceries from our local food bank to four local and home bound families each Wednesday. My husband has been doing this since the start of the pandemic. I’m glad I can now join him.

I am certified as a Reiki I and II practitioner. I share my skills by volunteering to provide Reiki to various groups in the community to spread healing energy.

April 2018 Camping Update: We recently purchased an Aliner Ranger 12 pop-up camper. Let the adventures begin! And, no more camping on the ground for us!

MY PINTEREST LINK

• Knitting - socks, hats - love sock yarn for socks and hats
• Crocheting - blankets, baby hats
• Making handmade envies
• Sewing (when my machine and I are not fighting)

In no particular order...meant to help you if you are stuck deciding what to send.

• Airmail stickers
• Self-care Items I love: Small hand lotion, handmade soap, fuzzy socks, ginger or mint tea, aroma therapy (lavender and mint), Burt's Bees lip balm, travel size cleansing wipes, scented hand sanitizer, cloth handkerchiefs, eye mask for sleep. Note: I am not a bath tub gal.
• Mailing labels in themes: lighthouse, yarn, bicycling
• Milk chocolate
• Handmade envies
• Letter sets and note cards
• Soft bed socks, especially aloe infused
• Seasonal dish towels, napkins, small paper plates
• Black tea with caffeine (plain, flavored, chai). I will re-gift non-black teas you send if it is a sender's choice swap. So, don't worry if you don't have black tea on hand.
• Orbit gum...bubble mint and cinnamon
• Burt's Bees lip balm
• Superwash wool yarn in worsted weight or cotton yarn in worsted weight.
• Return address labels - please include US or USA as part of the label
• Favorite colors: red, purple, teal, black, green
• Collections/themes: lighthouses, bicycle related items, yarn, knitting, snail mail, pop-up A-frame campers
• Knit or crocheted items I love: Hats, mittens, socks, cowls, bags
• Please see my Ravelry, Amazon and Etsy wish lists at the top of my profile for ideas.
• Favorite colors: red, purple, teal, black
• Solid lotion bars
• Holiday specific hand towels, plates or napkins.
• Handmade earrings - silver tones please
• Fabric/sewn zipper pouches - seasonal are awesome
• Handmade soaps mint and lavendar scents

I send swaps out on time. I also endeavor to rate in a timely fashion. If you have question about a swap I've marked as sent, please contact me via SwapBot messaging before rating. I'd like to have a chance to make things right.

If I have not rated you, please drop me a line and ask. I try to keep up with rating but sometimes, due to my humanness, I forget. I'm happy to look at my files and get the rating completed.

Please write your username and the name of the swap on something INSIDE of the envelope or package so I can rate you.

I'm not big on responding to ratings on my profile. Please don't take this personally. If you'd like to have more communication with me or become a pen pal, please let me know. I'm open to new pen pals and private swaps.

Please don't contact me to ask me why I did not give you a heart. If I didn't give you a heart, I didn't think your swap warranted it.

If your swap does not meet criteria, I will rate down, and contact you to let you know why. While I will still rate you down, I will change my rating if things are rectified in a timely fashion. I rate down pending resolution to notify other swappers and hosts of a potential problem. I will ALWAYS change my rating if I get something and things are resolved.

Most of all, Swapbot is a fun hobby for me. It's not a job. However, life sometimes happens. If for some reason you have a problem fulfilling a swap because you don't have the stuff or life is busy and you'll be late, please communicate with me. I'm more than willing to take your stress into consideration when I rate, IF I know what is happening and you communicate with me. I'll also communicate to let you know if I'm having a problem and would expect some flexibility and kindness from you.

If you are swapping with me and there is drama around things, don't be surprised if you can no longer contact me. I will block you without hesitation to save myself from your drama. I want to have fun and easy times here on Swapbot, not drama. It's nothing personal; it's about self-preservation.

I won't create a list for those who have not sent or not rated on my profile. I will call those people out through the rating, in public forums and on their profiles. I won't have my profile filled up with negatives. It's just how I'm choosing to do it.

Most importantly, enjoy Swapbot, the people you meet and the goodies that come your way! Let's create good Karma out there.