Designed by Special Request

The owner of a dive shop asked me if I could make a cup cozy with the diver down flag logo on it.

After a couple of tries, I came up with this.  If she likes it, she may put them up for sale in  her dive shop.

Happy Easter!

I hope that everyone is celebrating with loved ones today.

I have been asked to design something and I've been working on it very hard.  To do it in tapestry crochet wasn't giving me the results I had in mind, and working it on a diagonal wasn't doing it either.  I'm going to have to give the project more thought.

I put together some sea friends this weekend.  I have ideas for more.  Doing them on the fly without a pattern.

2 More Dolls Finished

and listed in my Etsy shop:

3 Finished Projects

Dolls!  I love making dolls.  Unfortunately, I have no granddaughters or I would be showering them with dolls!

I Have a Blog Problem

I have someone contacting me through my blog asking for the pattern for a doll I crocheted (L'il Buster).  I have informed her where she can purchase the pattern (from Kathleen Early- easily found on the web) and kindly declined to provide her with a copy.  Her e-mails come through in Spanish and she says she has the pattern but it's blurry.  I asked her if she has a photocopy of the pattern and if so, that isn't permissible.  I also told her I will not provide her with another photocopy. 

I keep getting comments from her and I've had to mark her latest as spam, in order to stop the conversation in its tracks. 

I will not - ever - provide anyone with a copy of a pattern used to make any of the items I show on my blog.  I purchased the pattern and others can do the same.  I respect the copyrights of others.

If you see something on my blog that you like - thank you for your kind comments.  But please don't ask me to provide you with the pattern.  I cannot and will not do so.

Thank you!

Latest Project

Okay, no one needed scarves...LOL!  My giveaway went nowhere.  I will probably donate them somewhere.

My latest project on my hook is a doll I just finished.  Next is a dog for my grandson.  Here are photos of the doll.  She is 18 inches tall.  I love crocheting dolls.  I will probably send one or two to the hospital.

Spring Scarf Giveaway - Contest Open Until 2/28/13

I am offering a spring scarf to two lucky winners.  In order to take a chance on winning one of these scarves, just comment on this post stating you would like to take part in the contest.  On February 28, I will pull the names of 2 of the commenters, and the first winner will take the multi-colored scarf and the second name will take the pink.  Or, I may offer the first name pulled to choose the color they want, and the second name pulled will receive the remaining scarf.  On 2/28, I will announce the names - check back to see if your name appears.  If so, I will contact you, or if I'm not able to reach you, you may contact me through my blog.  If you have any questions, please let me know.

Here are photos of the scarves:

Promised Photos

Here are the photos of some of the baby blankets I completed and my grandson's angry bird hat.  I've been having a blast crocheting.  I've missed it terribly.  I currently have two more blankets almost ready.  1 purple and white and 1 blue and white.

Crocheting and Loving It

I am enjoying my crochet time - haven't been able to do this in a long time.  I've finished 4 infant blankets.  2 of those are meant for a friend who had premature twins.  The little girls are doing fine so far.  I also made 2 sets of hats for them as well.

For the NICU, I have 2 blankets finished, along with a hat.  Pictures to follow.

10 Days Post-Op

10 days out and I've lost 8 pounds.  I don't go back to see the doctor for another 4 weeks now.  Incisions are all healing nicely.  I will be out of work for at least 6 weeks.  It will all be a  matter of getting used to eating again.  At this point, I am on a full liquid diet and trying to get 60 grams of protein in each day, along with 64 oz of water/fluid.  It's not easy.

I've been spending my off time crocheting.  I currently have 2 preemie hats and am working on the second preemie blanket for a friend who had 2 baby girls very early.  The babies are doing well, and I hope that they continue to improve day by day.  The second afghan should be finished tomorrow, at which time I will wash them all and pack them up for shipment.  Photos to follow.  I don't have my camera handy and my cell phone doesn't take good photos, or I would take a couple of pics now.

A New Journey

I've just gotten out of the hospital.  I had a gastric bypass done.  10 years ago I had a lapband put in in an effort to help control my weight.  I did quite well with it until my depression took on a life of its own working for "the boss from hell".  The lapband led to problems with acid reflux and GERD and possible Barrett's Esophagus.

After consulting with a gastrointestinal specialist for all these years, he decided that since medications weren't helping me anymore, perhaps I should consult another bariatric surgeon to have the band removed.

The wonderful bariatric surgeon was able to not only get approval to remove the band, but to convert my surgery to a bypass.

Now begins a new life again - one in which I picture myself healthier and able to spend constructive time with my grandson (and future grandchildren).

Wish me luck!

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?

This is a video of my grandson "reading" this charming book.  I bought the book for him for Christmas - I'd never heard of it before, but it's become one of his favorites.  What a great idea!  The book has a simple rhyme and the windows that open let him know what the next line will be!

I'd love to be able to write a children's book one day!

Justin Reading

My New Year's Resolution - More Crochet!

I've made myself a promise to crochet more this year.  It calms me and makes me feel better about myself - I love taking a skein of yarn and turning it into something useful or pretty, or both!

I've already started with a hat for my daughter-in-law and I'm making a second just like it.  I'll post a photo when it's finished.

Recent Events

I haven’t posted in a long time.  Been busy making Christmas gifts – photos of which I will post after Christmas.  The past week I’ve spent being angry at a system in which a mentally disturbed person can get their hands on a legally-purchased semi-automatic military style weapon and end the lives of 20 children and 6 adults in an elementary school for a reason apparent to no one except the killer.  I don’t use the term “suspected shooter” as the media does.  He was a killer.  In addition to the school teachers and their pupils, he also killed his mother, the owner of the legal rifle.

In my rantings and ravings against the sale of the above-mentioned weapons, I’ve upset family members with other thoughts on the subject.  For that, I’m sorry.  I’m sorry for the distance between us now, not for my opinion.  They are entitled to their opinions as well.  You start off posting your thoughts on the subject, you receive a response in opposition to your opinion and you answer it.  Suddenly, it’s escalated to a point where neither of you wants to see the other in print again.  For that, I grieve.  Perhaps the best thing to do is to ignore a post that you don’t agree with - social media is for people to share what’s important to them.  If you don’t agree with it, ignore it.  I promise to do my best to do this in the future.

The news in the last week has driven me into a deep depression like I haven’t experienced in a while.  Today – I feel somewhat rejuvenated.  I attended the holiday recital at my grandson’s preschool.  They were a chorus of angels.  I found myself smiling again.

The lost children of Newtown CT and their families deserve our prayers and shouldn’t stray far from our hearts.  But our children and grandchildren, full of life, should be in the forefront.  They should be hugged and squeezed, have attention lavished upon them and should be appreciated for the joy they carry within and they joy they share with us.

Finally! A Crochet-Related Post!

Sorry I have been off my game, and not had time to crochet lately.  I finished my business course (with an A - yippee!).  And now I have time to get back to my hook and yarn.  I just finished my first pair of socks.  They aren't the kind you wear with shoes.  These socks are for wearing around the house this winter.  I like barefoot, and this is close to it.

I made this pair without a pattern - just winging it and trying on as I went along.  They aren't the best looking things in the world.  Now that I've finished them, I can see some things I would do differently next time.  I've been intimidated by trying to make socks.  Don't ask me why.  I've been crocheting for over 30 years and I've made dolls, toys, blankets, vests, sweaters, doll clothes and kitchen items.  Lots of different things.  This is a first time for socks though.  I used 2 skeins of Deborah Norville Soft Worsted yarn - the color is called Toasted Marshmallow.  They made nice thick socks to keep off the chill of winter.  I finished one sock, and then used the second skein to start the second sock.  I ended up cutting about 3 feet of yarn off the second skein in order to start the sock in approximately the same place in the color sequence.  I was hoping to make them match as closely as possible.

Thank you to my inspiration Mrs. D who has crocheted many a sock and displayed them on her blog.  I've been admiring her work and it made me want to give this a try.  Maybe a little more practice and I'll be able to make socks as nice as hers!

Things I've Learned From Hurricane Sandy

1.  to be thankful that all we lost was electric power, and that family, pets and property are still with us.
2.  that my hairdryer is my best friend and I miss it...
3. that the thump in the night is probably one of the 3 cats...
4. that I am a Facebook addict...
5. that my 4G mobile device is my best friend...
6. that in spite of the difficulties, I was able to finish my online college course because...
7. Panera Bread offers wireless internet at 6:00 am...
8. that my washer/dryer is my best friend and I miss it...
9. that we don't need a house phone and I don't miss it at all...
10. that I can survive without TV (until Sunday when The Walking Dead comes on...)
11. that my dishwasher is my best friend and I miss it...
12. that T-Mobile is not my best friend - everyone else has signals and we have diddly-squat...
13. when running around looking for D-batteries, stop at the place called Batteries Plus first, not last...
14. that my coffee maker is my best friend and, yes - I miss it...
15. that food tastes better during a power outage - BBQ grill vs. microwave - grill wins every time...
16. that a portable generator is a thing of beauty!

Now on day 4 without power and possibly another 24-48 hours ahead of us.

Sincerely - my prayers go out to those who lost loved ones, who lost their homes and cars, who lost everything they own.  May God bless you all.  He has blessed me.

The Pioneer Life - You Can Keep It!

We are on our second day without power here - 5:39 pm will be 48 hours.  Doesn't look like it's coming back any time soon.
Sandy was not kind to the East Coast.  I read on the internet (battery will soon be dying on the 'puter and thank God for my mobile 4G hotspot) that over 5 million are without power.  Lost a tree in our back yard but a special thanks to God that it fell away from the house.

Now I see why the pioneers were up so early in the morning.  It's because they had no electricity and they were in bed by 7:00 pm!  We have 2 lanterns and several flashlights and I have 2 small candles in jars burning in the sink in the bathroom.  That's it.

We are cooking outdoors on the gas grill.  The contents of my refrigerator will be a total loss.  I have a huge amount of frozen food in the stand-along freezer which I am not touching.  I hope that it stays frozen enough to re-freeze.  I was always told that as long as there are still ice crystals in it, it's safe to freeze again.  I may be making a big pot of vegetable soup when the power comes back though.

Damn Sandy!

Storm's A-Comin'!

They're dubbing it Frankenstorm - Hurricane Sandy working her way across and about to collide with a cold front from Canada and an early winter storm coming from the west.  The way it sounds now is that it will linger over our area for days - high winds, lots of rain and plenty of flooding and power outages.  I'm hoping that things don't go that way.

I'm almost finished with schoolwork - hope to have that out of the way before the storm  hits.  Power outages will keep me from finishing my online work.

I've got yarn and hooks at hand, so I'm ready to hunker down and wait it out if necessary.

Good Wishes For My Daughter-in-Law

My dear daughter-in-law is having surgery this morning.  I am wishing her all the best.  I know everything will be alright.
We had dear grandson stay overnight with us so that I could drop him off at the baby-sitter's house this morning.  My goodness - to be young again!  "Let's go, Grammy!  Let's race!"  I loved watching him skip up the driveway (notice kids are the only ones who ever skip - why do adults not do that?  It's looks like a ton of fun!)  I really wish I felt as good about starting my day as he did about his.  The innocence of children.
I really have not had time to crochet and I've been missing it so.  But I'm almost through with this class and I should finish with an A!  Just one more group project to work on and one more test.

I do have plans to make another gray and white afghan for the NICU, since I still have plenty of those colors left.  I can't believe that it is almost Halloween - heck, it's almost Thanksgiving!  I'm taking the easy way out for Thanksgiving this year.  Ordering a pre-made Thanksgiving dinner from the local supermarket.  I can't enjoy a dinner after spending hours making it.  This way, no muss, no fuss, no 50 pounds of leftovers!

Well, back to school work this morning.  I miss my little grandson already!

Busy, Busy, Busy...

Haven't had a chance to write in a while.  I have been very busy with school work - I have about 2 more weeks of classwork to do before I finish this course.  I also had a request to make a baby afghan for a friend of my daughter-in-law for a baby shower.  Trying to crochet and study and do assignments was tough!  I did finish the afghan - on the morning of the baby shower!  I am sorry I did not get a picture of it before it was picked up.  It was a round ripple afghan in shades of pale gray and white, with charcoal gray accents.  It turned out quite nicely, as I was surprised by the color requests made by the girl who requisitioned it.

My online class is going well.  I should be able to pass with a high enough score to merit tuition reimbursement through my job.  I'll roll that reimbursement over into a spring class.  I'm enjoying the freedom of online classes.  I can work at my own pace and as long as I get my assignments in on time, it doesn't matter if I spend thirty minutes or 3 hours at a time on it.  In fact, today I had the opportunity to work ahead and finish something that isn't due until Wednesday this week.

Recently we lost our cat to cancer.  Shadow was a shelter cat, and we adopted her about 10 years ago.  I asked my son if he was ready to adopt another cat.  I truly do believe in giving homes to cast-off pets.  He was okay with it, so my son, my brother and I went to Cape May NJ to adopt a cat.  My brother intended to adopt one as well.  We chose the Cape May shelter because my sister has dealt with this shelter in the past and works with them socializing cats and kittens to prepare them for adoption.  Well, upon the approval of our applications, we met with the volunteers at the shelter.  She asked me what kind of cat I was looking for, and I asked her to show me a cat that was affectionate and sociable.  She showed me two - siblings that had been at the shelter since they were kittens.  Let me tell you - the minute I picked up the boy cat I was hooked.  And I didn't leave with one cat - I took his sister as well.  So we adopted 2 new pets.  Haven't finalized names for them yet.  The shelter people named them Rhett and Scarlet.  I felt silly calling the cat "Rhett", so I am calling them Pepper and Cinnamon.  My son isn't crazy about these names, so I asked him for input.  Hopefully, we will soon have forever names for them.  Photos of the cats to follow.