Yarnjeannie's Crochet Cache

My eyes were opened in a shocking way last week. I was looking forward to a new haircut and color and made an appointment with my favorite stylist. She has her own shop and recently moved to a new location. As part of the change, she now styles hair in front of a full-length mirror. OMG! I discovered (well, I acknowledged…) that I have enough middle-age spread for 2 middle-aged women! What a buzz-kill. I’m blaming the above-named parties for their Mocha Frappes and Coffee Coolattas and Iced Lattes. I finally wised up to the fact that I’m not really drinking coffee, but actually an ice-cream mixture with maybe a drop of coffee thrown in the mix. I became addicted to these since the Frappes were introduced (that being my drug of choice). The large size has well over 600 calories. I will be going through frappe-withdrawal, as I’ve made up my mind that I’ve got to stop before it’s too late. My pants are getting tighter and Dunlap’s disease is evident – as in my tummy dun-lapp...

My first home-grown tomato sandwich of the season was fantastic! It was worth the wait. There are about 4 more just on the edge of ripening. My Swiss chard has improved immensely. I was throwing away every stalk when it first came in. It looks nice now and I should have enough for a sidedish soon. The kids are home this weekend, so I want to stop by to see them today. I sure miss little Justin. He's a cutie and a sweetheart. I didn't get any crocheting done yesterday, but I'm back to work on it again today. Yesterday was a tough day for me. I had a very hard time getting up and moving around, and wasted half the day away. I'll be starting dinner soon. I'm making stuffed cabbage. Well, not really stuffed. I couldn't find a head of cabbage large enough for me to find leaves that could wrap around the meat mixture. So I'll put full leaves on the bottom of the pan along with shredded cabbage, form the meat mixture into meatballs, and then cover wit...

Rain! Just in time, as the landscape around here has really turned brown. Our gardens and flower beds need watering every night. We got a good soaking downpour last night, with two more thunderstorms earlier in the day. My garden is looking good again. My tomato plants must be 5 feet tall, with at least a dozen green tomatoes on it so far. I can’t wait for them to ripen. I really look forward to the first tomato/mayonnaise sandwich of the year! And BLTs – yummmmmm. The doll I’m crocheting is coming along nicely. After having some trouble crocheting the first hand and arm, the second one went easily after receiving the detailed instructions from the designer. At this point, I’ve finished as much as I can and I’m waiting for an order to come in from Joann’s. I decided to order plastic doll joints to connect the arms to the body. There are instructions to attach the arms using a homemade assembly with wire and plastic lids, or a professional assembly using a stove bolt. I’m ...

I've finally gotten into the groove - picked up the pattern for a doll I've been wanting to make for a long time now. I love the Kathleen Early dolls, with lifelike features. I'm making "Lil Buster" to enter into the Grange Fair in August. The legs and body were a breeze, but I've been hung up on crafting the right arm. I must have been out of touch with crochet for too long, because I frogged this arm so many times, I could have pulled my hair out! But then I would have had to crochet myself a wig! Anyway, try as I might, I just couldn't get the stitch count to come out right. I've been reading patterns for years now, and this pattern is well-written but I was just so confused. I finally e-mailed the designer and asked her for help. She was kind enough to reply with a more detailed set of instructions, and this was just what I needed. I now have the arm completed to the point where it is almost ready to be attached to the body. I'll star...

Well, this is going to be one hot summer! We must have hit 100 degrees today. I went out to the grocery store this afternoon, and couldn't wait to get home. The AC in the car just couldn't kick in fast enough for me. I started a new crochet project. My sweetheart ripple afghan is going on the back burner again for a while. I took a close look at it, and it's not going to be suitable for the grange fair. In all the time I haven't been working on it, it's been sitting on the back of my loveseat. My min pin has been pulling it down, mushing it into a comfortable bed and the afghan looks beat up already. It's okay. I will finish it and it's going to be a "keeper" afghan. My new project will be for the grange fair. I'm starting a Kathleen Early doll - L'il Buster. It's a fine project to carry back and forth to work with me - I can work on it at lunch time. So much easier to pack than a full size afghan. I'll post photos whe...

Today I saw something that touched my heart. It was the sight of my husband, standing on a ladder, putting a baby bird back in its nest. My son discovered the bird under the tree and came inside to tell us that it was injured and the dogs were barking at it. I went out to see it, and realized it was a baby who, although unhurt, wasn’t able to fly yet. It had fallen out of the nest. I moved the baby away from the dogs’ line of vision, but worried about leaving it on the ground where a neighborhood cat might get it. The poor thing must have been hungry because he opened his beak wide as could be when I picked him up. My DH was getting ready for a trip to NY, but took the time to ease my fears by putting the baby back where it belonged, with Mama Bird harassing him to no end in the process! What a guy! I count my blessings. The heat wave has broken for a few days anyway. It’s not so humid and “melty” outside. I hate days when the humidity makes the air as thick as soup, and I f...