WIP Wednesday

Source: http://supermommyornot.blogspot.com/2014/02/baby-4-38-weeks.html

Almost no progress on crochet or cross stitch this week. I'm stuck in baby prep mode so my WIPs include

packing my bag for the hospital,

getting the diaper bag ready, and cleaning and organizing the Bean's room.

I do have two "crafty" WIPs to focus on; one is my challenge for the 52 Week Crochet Challenge, 

and the other is putting together Mother's Day Survival Kits for the ladies at church. It's a simple craft, just something small for each of the moms. I have two neighbors coming over to help when I'm ready to assemble them.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://gratitudehabitat.com/

TUSAL

It's the new moon, so here is my TUSAL (Totally Useless Stitch A Long) report. This stitch along is being hosted by It's Daffycat.

My yarn ort jar is pretty full. I tied in all the ends on all my yo yos that need attached (about 150) plus finished a few small projects this month.

My thread ort jar has a few additions. I've done some stitching this month, but not a lot. 

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Two Tuesday

Source: hooksandyarns.blogspot.com

Two Things I'm Grateful For:

1. We've reached the halfway point on cleaning out the nursery. It's been the Box Dump room for the last few months, a storage place for all of our stuff that doesn't have a home yet. Thanks to more yard sale bargains, we've been able to move household things out and baby stuff in. The Bean might actually have a room by D-Day.

2. Our new puppy has been extremely well behaved. Even though he's only been here a couple of days, he's learning quickly what's OK and not OK to chew on. He's intrigued by the cats but not aggressive towards them. He and Sugar get along. And potty training is going well, too.

Two Patterns I Think Are Neat:

1. Daisy Centre Mandala Square

I've never made a mandala because I don't what to do with one. But this one was turned into a square. It would make a nice stashbuster blanket. No, I'm not starting another project :-)

2. Cuffed Baby Sock Booties

Now, for these, I had to almost crochet my fingers together to stop myself from starting some. They're an adaptation of my favorite slipper sock pattern so should be extremely easy, the Bean could use some, and they have a preemie pattern so I can make some for charity. But I can wait. A little while.

Thanks for reading.
Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://www.daveswordsofwisdom.com/2014/04/leave-good-impressions-wherever-you-go.html

Monday Musings

I went to my first Texas Stampin Up card class on Saturday with my neighbor. I had a lot of fun. It's been too long since I made cards. I left the Star one blank because it was a graduation card, and I don't know anyone graduating. I'll stamp it with a Happy Birthday stamp later.

I'm getting ready to pack my bag for the hospital. I wanted to take a pair of my slipper socks with me, but both pairs decided to fall apart in the last week :-( I guess I wore them and washed them to death. So I grabbed some stash yarn (Premier Dream in Tucson Teal) and made myself a new pair.

I received this in the mail on Saturday. My first thought was, "Oh boy! More baby wipes! You can never have too many." But then I opened it and found something even more exciting.

Yarn! Debi Y. from Dly's Hooks and Yarns sent me three balls of yarn. Thank you so much, Debi :-) I love them and will definitely find a use for them. I'm especially intrigued to try the keppi yarn with the fringe.

Our three trees in the backyard have been identified as peach trees. They're full of little, fuzzy, green footballs right now. With any luck we'll have lots of yummy peaches soon.

And yesterday Tim and I both got hit with the stupid stick when we left Walmart. Despite already having a large dog with only two brain cells plus a baby on the way, we decided to adopt a puppy. This little guy was in the parking lot with his teenage owners looking for a new home. I wanted to give the girls a piece of my mind because it was 85 degrees out and they didn't have any water for the dog. Instead we just took him home. He's seven weeks old and is half Blue Heeler Hound (an Australian cattle dog) and half Cur (so he fits right in with Sugar). We named him Smores.

Have a marvelous Monday!

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://gratitudehabitat.com/

Week 8: Work It or Frog It!

This week for the 52 Week Crochet Challenge, I have to sort through all my WIPs and UFOs and either choose to resume work on them or frog them. Ouch! I really needed this challenge. There were a lot of unfinished projects floating around.

On the positive side, I realized when I was frogging several projects (about 6 in all), I didn't feel too upset. I guess I wasn't as attached to them as I thought I was.

Here are the UFOs I decided to hang onto and continue working on:

1. Funny Bunny. I refuse to give up on amigurumi! I'm either stubborn or stupid. I love making the pieces, but I hate sewing them together. I need to find someone who loves to whipstitch. All I need to make and attach are the arms and Funny Bunny (or Frankenbunny, as Hope calls it) will be done.

2. The Wool Eater. I really enjoy crocheting this. It's time consuming and very warm to work under but enjoyable. I've decided to add three more colors (6 rounds total) and call it finished. That'll make it around 36" square.

3. Peace Granny. This is one I started for Hope. She loves peace signs. It's a great stashbuster. Round two is extremely tricky but once you get past it, the square's easy enough to finish. I have a lot more squares to make; she wants it to fit her queen sized bed. Maybe a birthday present for next year? 

4. Polka Dot. I love the patterns for the squares. They're all done, just need joining. What's holding me back is attaching the roses. I love making the roses, but I hate attaching them. I'm not sure why I have such issues with whipstitching; it's not hard. I just don't like to do it.

5. Maureen Scarf. This is a beginner pattern, but it was the first time I crocheted with sock yarn. I stalled out on it when the cat ate the second ball of yarn needed and I had to buy another one. It shouldn't be a problem to finish. 

 6. Granny Square Sampler Afghan This is a major thorn in my side. I really have no desire to finish it, but I put too much effort into it to frog it. Some of the squares I enjoyed making; others I hated. The job now is to suck it up, join all the squares (difficult because they're all different sizes), and call it done.

With the exception of the Peace Sign blanket, I think I can finish all five of these by the end of the year. Maybe. 

Of course, I have a bunch of WIPs, too. These are in addition to the Granny Stripe, Round Ripple and Yo Yo Blanket.

1. Bubbles Baby Blanket. I'm stalled on this one. I enjoy making these, but I haven't had much interest in it lately.

2. Baby Cocoon. I'm always making these. They're a fun and quick project.

3. Squircle Blanket 2. This one's for the Bean. I may or may not get it done before D-Day. 

1. Cupcake Hats. I love making baby hats. They're fun and quick, too.

2. Squircle Blanket 1. Here's another one I'm stalled on. I'm not sure why. I enjoy the pattern and am loving the Flat Braid Joining method. All it needs are two rows of squares and a border.

Scary, I know. The number of unfinished projects is overwhelming. And I can't seem to stop starting new ones. Focus. I need to learn how to focus. Does anyone else have this problem?

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://www.keepcalmandcarryon.com/creator/?shortcode=awnmtsdI

Mystery Yarn Stashbusters

A friend of my neighbor's found out I like to crochet. She mentioned they really need preemie items for one of the local hospitals. I'm thrilled to help because I like to donate locally as well as to different places across the country. She even brought me some yarn. 

One of the skeins she brought looked familiar. I dug through my yarn cabinet and found two more exactly like it. This yarn is soft and squishy, and it works up beautifully.

Despite having innumerable UFOs and WIPs that I should be working on (you'll see just how many tomorrow!), I spent yesterday and Thursday happily playing with this yarn. The two cocoons are the Bippity Bop pattern from Dly's Hooks and Yarns, and the three hats are from the Dainty Daisy, 

I have a couple more items to make, then I'll give them to my neighbor to take to the hospital. She told me the name a couple of times but I can't remember what it is. Gotta love baby brain.

Here's my problem. Does anyone know what this yarn is? I really like it and would like to buy more if it's still available.

It's a crinkly yarn similar to Lion Brand Homespun but much thinner, either a thick sport weight or thin worsted weight. Both the blue and the white have a thin string of white wound through them to give the strands more luster. Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks for reading.

Have a super Saturday :-)

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://quotationsquotes.com/2014/02/02/best-63-quotes-on-life-you-must-read/

 

52 Week Crochet Challenge

A couple of days ago I saw this post on Crochet Concupiscence about the 52 week crochet challenge hosted by Julie at Red Berry Crochet. It sounds really neat, so I thought I'd jump on board.

It started back in March, but with each challenge lasting a week, it was easy enough to get caught up.

Here are my responses to challenges 1-7.

Week 1: Celebrate National Crochet Month

March was National Crochet Month. I usually forget this. If I had thought about it, I probably would have had some extra blog giveaways and learned a few new crochet stitches. Something to shoot for next year.

Week 2: Start a crochet notebook, journal, scrapbook or blog.

Blog - check.
At the end of each month, I try to print a collage photo from Walgreens of all my finished projects from that month. They're all in a folder now, but eventually I'd like to scrapbook them.
The Footprints notebook is my crochet WIP journal. I keep track of everything I'm working on including yarn colors, pattern location and hook size being used. I also make lists of things to crochet for people, jot down future WIP ideas, and write down any patterns I create.

Week 3: Crochet a flower or make a project that has a flower motif or theme.

It wasn't made during the first week of spring, but here's my Spring Garland hanging in my living room window. It has an identical twin hanging on the left and on the right.

Week 4: Learning to crochet

I was taught how to crochet three years ago in a free class at my church. I had always wanted to learn but, because I'm a visual person who has to be shown, couldn't learn out of books. I had no idea there were videos on YouTube or websites with tutorials.
Both of my grandmother's crocheted, but one lived too far away to have any contact except by phone and the other wouldn't teach me unless I held my hook and yarn exactly the same way she did. I love my grandmother but I couldn't make my fingers behave like hers.
My class instructor, Vicki, didn't care how I held the hook and yarn as long as my stitches were consistent. She taught me the basic stitches (chain, slip, single, half double,double), how to read a pattern and gave us a basic project (a Mile a Minute afghan). I was off and running with no looking back.
Funny enough, out of four people who took the class (three students and the teacher), I'm the only one who still crochets.

Week 5: Learn a new stitch this week and show off a sample.

I've always wanted to learn the Catherine's Wheel stitch. I discovered it's not that different from the Bavarian stitch used in the Wool Eater blanket. I watched this YouTube video from the Crochet Geek and followed along.

Mine's a little loopy because I kept my stitches super loose so I could see it better. I didn't put the edging on my sample, but I like the rounded edge demonstrated at the end of the video.
I like it. I can see myself using this stitch for future projects.

Week 6: Organize your yarn.

Yarn, yarn, everywhere.
Full skeins of yarn get put in the cabinet. From top to bottom, the cubbies hold the DK weight, then the worsted weight, then the bulky weight. It's sorted by color, too, in each weight. If possible, I try to give each color it's own cubby, but for space reasons I have to condense some.
Yarn being used for WIPs is put with the project in a basket or bag with the hook and pattern being used.
Scrap yarn is balled and put in cloth bins in a cube shelf in the craft closet. It's organized by weight.
There are usually bags and bins of unsorted yarn in several rooms of the house, waiting for room in the cabinet.
And yes, I still need more yarn. I can never have enough :-)

Week 7: Make a scrappy yarn project.

I always have a Yo Yo blanket in the works. This is my current one, the third one I've made. The first looked about the same, but the second had turquoise yo yos attached with brown. It's very soothing to make, uses up lots of those tiny scraps of yarn that aren't good for much else, and travels well (the yo yos anyway). I keep a sandwich bag in my purse with small balls of yarn, an H hook, a small pair of scissors, and a yarn needle in it. Anytime I'm stuck somewhere, I can pull it out and crochet a couple of yo yos quickly. When I have enough (500 for each blanket I've made so far), I spend a couple weeks at home attaching them. 

The challenge for this week is Work It or Frog It. So I'm gathering my WIPs and UFOs together and deciding what to do with them. My goal is to have them sorted out this weekend.

Thanks for reading.
Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Tickled Thursday

I don't use Facebook or Twitter, but I'm hopelessly addicted to Pinterest. These are for all my fellow addicts...

Source: http://www.dumpaday.com/random-pictures/funny-pictures/funny-pictures-day-101-pics-6/

Source: http://www.someecards.com/usercards/nsviewcard/MjAxMi1lYTlmMjRiNWQ4OWMxMjUz

Source: http://www.someecards.com/usercards/nsviewcard/MjAxMi0xOWY2YTBjNDJjNzAzNmE5

Source: https://www.blogger.com/blogin.g?blogspotURL=http://marlenemccune.blogspot.com/2011/08/pinterest-ii-adventures.html

Source: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=564721476879236&set=a.561058273912223.128635.561024977248886&type=1&theater

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

WIP Wednesday

Woo hoo! I actually got some sleep last night! First time in about three days. Of course, that means I'm having an "I want to do everything!" nesting day. I'm really trying to restrain myself and plan small projects for the day so I don't overdo it again.

On the WIP front, I have a couple simple crochet projects I'm focusing on this week. They're both for my Half Knits crochet group and use the yarn I brought home from our last meeting: Lion Brand Sayelle in Light Pink and Springtime Ombre and Red Heart Super Saver in White.

Granny Stripe from Attic24

Baby Round Ripple from Project Angel Kisses

Both are simple, brainless patterns that work well for my sleep deprived brain.

I've done a little cross stitching over the last couple weeks.

I finished the green stripe and started a peach stripe on the March Cherished Teddies Roly Poly bear.

  

I did the backstitching for the body and one leg and did some stitching on the face for the Another Day Another Disaster dog.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: http://www.getfitglobal.com/fat-loss-factor.html

Two Tuesday

Source: hooksandyarns.blogspot.com

Two Things I'm Grateful For:

1. Bargain shopping. Friday we bought a stroller, two baby bathtubs (one newborn, one infant), and a playmat for $65. Saturday we bought a changing table, rocker, and a bag of clothes for $25. That's a lot of baby stuff for less than $100!

2. My patient family. The closer I get to the end of my pregnancy (5 weeks to go), the less pleasant I become. I blame it on hormones and lack of sleep. My energy and patience fluctuate hourly. But through it all, my sweet hubby and wonderful daughter smile and offer to do whatever they can to turn me back into a sane person.

Two Patterns I Think Are Neat:

1. Cozy for Jars or Cans

I'm a hoarder. I'll admit it. Some things I have no trouble throwing away. But for some reason, I can't throw away a glass jar. Spaghetti sauce, jelly, salsa... All these jars are destined to be washed and stored for some strange, future purpose. Now, I have something to do with them and an answer when Tim asks, "Do we really need all these glass jars under the sink?"

2. Crocheted Hammock

This just looks cool! I think it would take forever to make, but it would be awesome. And Tim does keep asking for a hammock...

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration

Source: placebochallenge.com

Monday Musings and Giveaway Winners

I hope everyone had a wonderful, blessed Easter. Ours was very quiet, as holidays tend to be since we moved to Texas. We went to the sunrise service at church. It was very nice but very different from what we're used to. For the last 6 years, we attended the sunrise service at Sea World with 7000 other people. A small, intimate service was a good change. The rest of the day was spent relaxing.

I'm still sore from Saturday, but looking at the progress we made makes me smile and look forward to the day when we're fully unpacked and organized.

One of the shelves we got from our neighbor. I had to get a little creative on the third shelf, but I was able to fit all the books I wanted on it.

The other shelf from our neighbor. This one's for the Bean. I put all the children's books I've saved through the years on the two shelves along with our wipes supply. The shelf with the door holds all the diapers. The three drawers at the bottom hold all other baby supplies.

The two shelves in the garage now hold all of Tim's books.

A little shelf I picked up at a yard sale on Saturday for $5. It looks nice in our bedroom.

We still have about a dozen boxes of books that have to stay in storage until we get more shelves, but we're making progress.

The closet in the hallway is now the craft supply home. A little tight but manageable. It doesn't hold everything, but it's still organized.

OK, I admit it, I overdid it Saturday. But it's hard to stop when you're on a roll. I'm going to try to pace myself better over the next couple weeks. I'm determined to have the nursery cleaned out and ready before the Bean gets here.

Giveaway Winners!

The official prize drawer is at work today, so I had to officiate in his absence.

I loaded the super scientific prize winner generator and drew two names.
The winner of Giveaway #1 (three skeins of Lion Brand Wool-Ease yarn)

is....

Linda from Stitchin With My Furbabies!!! Congratulations, Linda!

And the winner of Giveaway #2 (three skeins of Patons Classic Wool DK Superwash yarn)

is.....

Heather from At Home on the Meadow!!! Congratulations, Heather!

Linda and Heather, can you please email your mailing addresses to bookworm187@earthlink.net so I can send your prizes?

Also, Norma, can you also email your mailing address to bookworm187@earthlink.net so I can send your gratitude stone?

Thanks again, everyone, for two years of wonderful bloggy fun and friends. I appreciate all your comments and love getting to know you on your blogs.

Thanks for reading.

Blessings :-)

Today's Inspiration