Cozy Homemade Gifts

This year I made five snuggly blankets for Christmas gifts to share with friends and family.  I was pretty happy with one of the patterns and made three different versions in different color combinations.  It came together pretty quickly--I finished half of one on the flight to Charlotte for Thanksgiving.  I first made a pink and purple one, doublestranded, double crochet V-stiches for Rachel and John to snuggle up when their little girl arrives next month.  I forgot to take a picture, but then I made a brown/beige one for my friends Mere and Nick, and then a third one in browns and greens for Annette.

The next was a repeat pattern from last year, the diagonal blanket I made then for Madaline & Ernie, Jeff & Jo, and Kate & Andy.  This year I used the same cozy Lion Brand Homespun yarn in a royal and a light blue to make the pattern for my friend Stacy. 

Finally, the last blanket I made was again from the cozy Homespun in shades of green for my brother JR and his girlfriend Jen.  It's a little chevron wave and I like how the colors blend together.  JR was very kind when he left me a message that Mom would be proud of the work I did on that afghan.

All three patterns were free from either JoAnn Fabrics or the Lion Brand website.  If you're interested in the specific pattern, leave me a message below and I'd be happy to share it with you (I just don't have them handy right now).

I'm Sorry I Made You Cry (Not Really)

This is an apology to my friend Lisa. Except that it'll probably make her cry again.  And I'm not actually apologizing.  But it's not my fault--she's pregnant and hormonal.

My dear, dear friend Lisa is having a baby!  I'm so excited for her and her husband Larry.  Their little girl is due at the end of September.  When Lisa texted me an ultrasound picture in March, I bit back a scream (Dave knew immediately from the gasp when I said it was a message from Lisa and since we were in the car--he was driving--he kindly asked me not to scream to loud), called her immediately and told her it would be a girl.  I could just see her looking at me funny through the phone and wondering why I thought that, but I knew.

See, in January after my Mom passed, I took all her crochet materials, yarn, unfinished projects, and brought them home.  As I started going through them, I found the very beginnings of a pink baby blanket, including the large ball of pink baby yarn and the pattern for a beautiful blanket.  My mom had always made a crocheted blanket for every baby--no matter if it was the first, second or fifth baby, family, friend, coworker or acquaintance--a blanket for every baby.  It's a tradition I started once I learned to crochet and my own friends started having babies.  Racking my brain, I couldn't come up with anyone she may have known who was expecting, or at the least who was far enough along to know they were expecting a girl.  But for some reason I was compelling to finish the blanket because clearly it belonged to some little girl...eventually.

Fast forward two months later but I couldn't tell Lisa why I knew she'd have a girl.  Then in May she told me my prediction was right, and still, I wasn't ready to tell her why I knew in my heart of hearts that Lisa would soon have a daughter.

Since Lisa lives in Florida and our friends are scattered everywhere between here and there, a traditional shower just wasn't logistically possible.  So I did the next best thing and enlisted our friends to quite literally shower her with presents, all shipping her our gifts in the same week.  So I put together a package of adorable outfits, a book, a stuffed moose (Dave had to pick out something), a few things specifically for mama-to-be, and this blanket.  I included a note to the baby, as well as a note to Lisa where I explained the origins of the blanket and why my convictions were so strong.  I will say, for my part I did write a line in the card to tell her to stop crying, it was just the hormones.

So yeah, I got a text from Lisa, scolding me and telling me I was in trouble.  But that's ok. Sometimes the only way to tell a friend you love them is to make them cry.

Baby Shower!

I've been so excited for this post, but it's not really my news to share, so I figured I'd wait until a more public event to announce.

Cindy's having a baby!  Yay! 

I am so excited for Cindy and Keith (and big brother Jake!) so I offered to host a baby shower to celebrate.  Little did I know the little at-home affair I had in mind would turn into 30 of Cindy's friends and family gathered in my living room to celebrate.  That whole think about 25% of people on the invite list declining?  Yeah, more like 10%.  And that was pushing it.

No bother, because I made a ton of yummy food (all to be featured on the cookie blog), a polka dot theme (complete with polka dot invitations, balloons, napkins, ribbons and bows, gift wrap, wrappers on the food, and even my shirt!) and a lot of fun watching Cindy open all the adorable gifts she got.  Can we talk for a second about the cute baby girl pants with stuff on the bum?  Cupcakes, monkeys, kittens and puppies all smiling cheerfully from the baby's bottom. 

We had a wonderful time and I am so thankful for Stacy and Erin who were a huge help in getting set up with food on the table before (and as) people arrived.  I probably would have lost my mind without their help! 

The only shower game planned was a diaper raffle (anyone who brought diapers got their name entered into a raffle for a gift certificate) and a I had a timer go off every so often and whoever's gift Cindy was opening got a prize.  Simple, but fun (because really--shower games can be annoying, especially with that many people). 

As a gift, I made Cindy an afghan, new born hat and booties and stuffed them into a basket full of essentials, books and a cute outfit.  I also put together a hospital survival kit.  I'd seen this one pinned on Pinterest and thought it was a great idea so immediately decided to put it together.

Cindy is due March 28th but thinks she'll go early. Last week we had to plead with the little one to not make an appearance before the shower.  I kindly told her she couldn't come early because she didn't have any stuff yet!  But now I think Cindy and Keith are well-prepared (well, as prepared as you can be) for her to make her arrival.

Congratulations on the new addition to your family!

Presents

I do have tales and pictures from Disney, but first I've been waiting to share all the crochet projects I've been making.  These were all Christmas gifts, so now I can finally show you since the recipients are cuddled with their presents now.

I could not stop making this pattern. In fact, I have blue and pale blue yarn (Lion Brand Homespun) to make another one because I love the pattern so much.  It works up so quickly and the yarn is very soft making the blanket super cozy and warm.  The one on the left was for Dave's uncle and aunt, Jeff and Jo.  I was making it while at Dave's parent's house and Madaline was so excited about it I decided to make them the one on the right.  The middle one is actually the first one I made and I gave that to our friends Kate and Andy because they rock and have a purple bedroom.  (Andy's hardcore that way).  The pattern was free from the Joann Fabrics' website and I think it was called Diagonal Throw.

This one I made for my cousin, Angela.  I loved the variegated red and black yarn and since those are her school colors, I thought she'd appreciate it.  It's fluffy and soft, a Sensations boucle yarn. It's just a square (granny square style but without changing colors or yarns).  Perfect for Ange to cuddle up and study. 

This pattern was on the back of a ball of Deborah Norville Collection Everyday yarn, so I picked up enough cream and blue variegated balls to complete the pattern for our friends Lisa and Larry.  They live in Florida and love the beach and I love how the patterns floats between being clouds or waves.

Using some more Homespun yarn, I made this curly scarf and a set of fingerless gloves (or texting gloves as they are being called now) for my cousin Nikki. It's very girly and cute and fun, so I thought she'd like it.  Both patterns came from the Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet I've followed before.

I decided to also make a scarf and fingerless glove set for Cindy using Vanna's Choice yarn.  the gloves are the same pattern as Nikki's but the scarf is just a series of double crochets and half double crochets to my preferred length--no actual pattern.  I just thought it was cute.

I also made a few extra scarves and gloves.  I might keep a set or I might donate them.  We'll see.  I'm sure there will be some more projects to come up this spring and I'm also excited because Rachel has picked up crocheting so we'll be able to swap patterns and such.  Yay!

Operation Baking GALS

As challenging as life has been these past few years, I've continued to seek ways that I can feel rewarded.  I truly believe in the good karma that comes from volunteers and giving of oneself in time, service or goods and money.  Since Dave and I have had to be careful with our budget during his unemployment, the checks once written to the causes we believe in have gotten smaller.  But my willingness to help has probably gotten bigger.

One of the reasons I started crocheting was so that I could give my friends and family beautiful homemade gifts, but also so that I could create items to donate to people in need.  So I've made  Comfort Scarves for women in domestic violence shelters and chemo caps for cancer patients at area hospitals.  We began fostering dogs for All Dog Rescue partly because of our desire to have a dog in our lives, but also to help save a dog and give it a good life while finding it's forever home.  We have the love, time and home to give so it made sense to get involved. 

About once a year my department at work has an opportunity to do a volunteer project.  We are given the opportunity to leave our desks for the morning and join a group of our coworkers to help out an area agency (as a group) for a few hours. Then we come back, have lunch and return to our desks for the afternoon, feeling fulfilled, at least in my part, because spending the morning sorting food at the Greater Boston Food Bank or organizing donated children's clothing at Cradles to Crayons puts everything in perspective and inspires me to be a better person and help those around me.

Even my baking has become a source of goodwill.  A couple weeks ago I was looking for recipes from a fellow blogger, Beantown Baker, and found a link to an organization called Operation Baking GALS (Give A Little Support).  The group is an all volunteer, web-organized effort that succeeds in getting groups of people to rally and bake homemade treats for service members.  The idea is that service members are nominated and each month maybe 5-10 teams are created to bake for one of the nominated individuals.  Team members bake up treats and ship them to their service member, who over about a week's time ends up with as many as a dozen or more packages full of goodies and other items from home.  The idea is to give these heroes a reminder of home and let them know they are supported, even if it's from a complete stranger.  I instantly loved the concept and had to join.

So this weekend I'll be baking for Denny, a first lieutenant in the Marines stationed in Afghanistan.  Denny grew up in Altoona, PA, not far from where I went to college and only a couple of hours from Pittsburgh.  When looking through the 10 nominated service members, I could have baked for any of them, but the almost-hometown connection sealed the deal.  I'll plan to make something yummy and add some extra store-bought comforts lacking in Afghanistan (apparently Denny is a fan of Cheez-its and Pringles).

It's so easy to be kind to people and help others.  Sort of amazing that in a time of financial crisis globally and a tight budget at home, I've found more ways to help people that I probably ever have before.  I plan on saving all these karma points for something big.

A Few Projects

While I was at jury duty in March, I started working on a few crochet projects (it made the time go by).  Following a free pattern I picked up from Joann Fabrics, I figured out hats a little bit better and was able to finish 5 chemo caps recently.

The Michael's craft store near me collects the caps year round for area chemo patients, so I dropped off all of them there.  I liked this project because I felt good about helping someone else, I used up some extra (read: free) yarn and I learned something.  A veritable trifecta.

I also finished up a beach bag for my friend Lisa.  Her birthday was last month and she's moving to Florida next month, so I came up with this patterns after failing miserably at one of the patterns in the Chicks with Sticks book. 

I used bamboo silk yarn and it's so soft.  The bag will stretch a lot, but the yarn is strong, so it'll be great for sunglasses, sunscreen, a book and some snacks.

A few other projects are lined up now, but we'll see how much I get on the ball with them.  I think I have 4 projects in various stages on not being done right now.  Oops.

Civic Responsibility

Yesterday I had the joy of partaking in what some (the judge) might call our most important civic responsibility, outside of voting--jury duty.  While I wasn't thrilled with the prospect of a day spent sitting and waiting, I did look view it as an opportunity to spend a day reading or crocheting, even if there chairs weren't exactly comfortable.

Jurors in Massachusetts are summoned from 9 am to 4 pm on they date dictated by the state, but are asked to arrive by 8 am for processing and instructions.  Shortly before 7:30 am I found a place to park in Worcester (not after driving in a circle or two) and made my way to the courthouse.  While walking to the building, another juror who was also confused by the crazy roads was parked randomly on the street and asked me if I knew where the courthouse was.  I told her (right in front of us) and asked, due to the confused look on her face, if she had jury duty.  She confirmed and I pointed her to the lot I used, supposedly for jury pool parking.

Woman: Then where do I go?

Me: Well, I'm going to walk in the front door of the courthouse and see what happens.

I've never been summoned before, so I didn't know exactly what to expect, but anticipated I would just be waiting.  Worst case I would actually be called in for selection and potentially impaneled.  I was hoping that if it got to the point a lawyer would ask me questions to determine my biased, I could tell them I spend all my free time watching Law and Order marathons in every flavor.  This wouldn't be completely inaccurate.

Guess what I learned upon walking in the courthouse?  It's better to crochet than knit!  I had brought a bag of projects to work on and when I went through security (bag scanners and metal detectors, something caught the officer's eye.

Officer: Crochet hooks?

Me: Yes.

Officer: But no knitting needles?

Me: Correct. I didn't even bring scissors.

Officer: Ok, no problem.

Apparently I'm not dangerous with a hook.  (Insert your own conclusions here.)

Upon arriving in the Jury Pool room, I was registered and got my juror number: 80.  I looked at the room with enough chairs for about 120 people.  This did not seem like a good number.

I took a seat, read a case for work, had some snacks and generally just began the waiting process.  What really amazed me was the number of people who were just sitting there.  the vast majority hadn't brought a book, magazine, newspaper or even a cup of coffee to keep themselves occupied.  What's more is that as the day went on, I learned may of them had been summoned before, so it's not like they didn't know the day was spent just sitting in a room.

Between 8 am and 9 am we watched a little video on what it means to be on a jury and the aforementioned judge came to give us a pep talk.  Shortly after 9 am, the first group of jurors (#1-74) were called to go for selection.  That's when the fun began.

Those jurors went to a small room off to the side and were (presumably) lined up and given instruction before walking out of the area and up to one of the courtrooms.  While this group was lining up, another woman summoned for the day came in.  Her name, for all intents and purposes, is Princess.

Apparently Princess had a juror number that fell into the range of the first group.  She didn't understand why Rose, the court officer in charge of the jury pool, wouldn't let her just go with them.  There was some conversation I missed prior to this, but here is where my ears perked up.

Princess: I don't understand.  I belong with that group.

Rose: But you were late.  You were summoned to be here at 8 am and it's after 9:30.  You've received no instruction and the selection is about to get started.  We can't delay it because you were late.

Princess: But I'm here for the morning session, so you should just let me got with them.

Rose: There is no morning session. Our day goes from 9 to 4.  You have to be here for the whole day. If you can't I'd be happy to reschedule you for another day when you can be here all day.

Princess:  I can't reschedule. I took off work to be here today.

Rose: Then you'll have no problem being here until 4 pm.

This little interchange caused the rest of us to snicker, raise our eyebrows and roll our eyes.  From where we were sitting, we couldn't even see Princess, so we were eager to see her come around the corner.  When she did, let's just say I was unimpressed.  She was dressed nicely enough (even though she wore a velvet jacket.  And it was 55 degrees yesterday) but had a sour, annoyed look on her face.  I wanted to shake her and ask what she expected.  Jury duty has a reputation for a reason!  Oh and she was another one of these people who didn't bring anything to do and just sat there wallowing in her bitterness.  At some point I heard a strange noise and looked up to see her rolling her purse-sized lint brush on her outfit.  I must have had a bizarre look on my face because the guy sitting at the other end of my row just started laughing when he saw me.

A few minutes later, she went up again.  Several of us just giggled as we watched her approach Rose's desk.

Princess:  When will the next group be called?

Rose: I don't know.

Princess: Well, I need to know.

Rose: I can't tell you.  It's up to the judge. He may call in 5 minutes, he may call at 2 pm.  I have no idea.

Princess: Well, can't I just go and join that other group now?

Rose: No that's not how it works.

Princess: But my number was in that group.

Rose: That group went to be selected for a trial that is probably going to last 2 and a half weeks.  You said you couldn't even be here all day, but you can be here every day for 2 and a half weeks?  I'd be happy to send you.

Princess must have mumbled something (she didn't strike me as the type to not respond) but I didn't catch it.  And Rose was quickly becoming my hero.  She was probably in her 50s and couldn't even be 5 foot tall, but she was a spitfire (who was very nice to the rest of us) and held her ground firmly.

About an hour and half later, the original group of jurors came back (minus those who were selected).  Rose continued to give us updates about the status of the other jury trials pending for the day, which had been at 4 and were now decreased to 2.  Rose had also mentioned (before Princess arrived) that lunch break was generally an hour long and usually started a 1 pm.

Shortly after the first group of jurors returned, Rose announced that some jurors would be released.  She was very careful with the words she chose.

Rose: Those of you who went to jury selection early can leave now.

She didn't say numbers 1 through 74, and I honestly believe it was because she didn't want Princess to have the opportunity to leave.  Priceless.  There were some more Rose and Princess interchanges and it got to the point that the rest of us didn't even try to conceal our disdain.  We laughed audibly at the exchanges and several people catcalled Princess as she approached Rose's desk.

Rose kept calling to see if the rest of us could be released.  She hoped to let us know by lunch so that we would know to either go to lunch or head home.  Finally at 12:45 pm she announced she was going to go straight to the courtroom and find out.  Now, knowing this was the difference between going to lunch and then returning only to find out I could have gone home, or just going home.  I was more than pleased to sacrifice a few minutes of my lunch time to clarify my overall time commitment.

At 12:59 pm, Princess announced to the rest of us, "I think it's illegal for them to keep us past 1 pm."

I laughed.  Loudly.

One of the guys behind me said, "Yeah, I don't think you have any clue what you're talking about so you might as well just be quiet."  Also said loudly.  And also causing the rest of us to burst out into laughter.  "In fact," he continued, "you should stay later since you weren't here on time."

A few minutes later Rose came and much to our delight announced we were no longer needed.  We all thanked her and I'm pretty sure most of the group considered punching Princess in the face. Outside of the courthouse, of course.  Ok, maybe just I considered it.

I wouldn't say I enjoyed jury duty, AKA sit around and wait day, but at least I can say I appreciated the entertainment.  And I complete 2 1/2 chemo caps for charity.

Projects and Gifts

It's been a long while since I talked about my crochet projects,but I have good reason.  Everything that I've made in the past few months was a Christmas gift and of course I wanted to keep them a surprise.

It started in September when I decided I would make my nieces and nephew blankets.  I started with Elyse's and finished it it about 3 weeks.  Except for the edges, which I did the week before Christmas. Just in time to wrap and ship it.  But I digress.  I didn't use a particular pattern--I just decided to use a stitch I liked and consulted a few patterns for an estimate on number of stitches to get roughly the size I wanted.  After taking only 3 weeks to finish a pretty big blanket, I thought, "That was easy, of course I have time to do one for Aidan and one for Abi."  Oh what a silly girl I am some times. 

First I struggled with getting the yarn I wanted.  It was only available online and then I had an issue with the website showing one price, but charging me another (higher) price, so I had to call and get that sorted out.  It was relatively painless, but nonetheless took some time. 

And then cookie season started and most of my time usually spent in front of the TV (perfect crochet time #1) was spent baking.  Additionally, since these blankets were pretty big, I couldn't very well do them on the train (perfect crochet time #2).  But I worked and worked, and by mid-December, I had all three blankets complete, except for the edges and tying in the ends.

I had the brilliant idea that I would use the cute, fuzzy fun fur yarn to do the edges on Elyse and Abi's blankets.  It would be adorable and they would love it.  Now, a few years ago, my mom had made me a scarf using that kind of yarn and had told me it was a labor of love because it was a pain to work with.  Not that I didn't believe her, but holy crap.  That stuff it just awful for crocheting. A friend tells me it's better for knitting, so I won't completely dismiss it as a medium in general.  And I bought 4 skeins of it.  Want to know how much I used?  One and quarter skeins.  So of course I will suffer through making something else using it because I'll hate to see it go to waste.  After completing the edging on Elyse's blanket and starting on Abi's, concerned about being done in time to wrap and ship, I looked at Dave and said, "Next September, when I say I want to make all the kids sweaters for Christmas, I give you full permission to punch me in the face."

Elyse's blanket

So I was a little ambitious, but it was totally worth it.  After using every bit of spare time I could find, three beautiful blankets were wrapped, each with a book, perfect for snuggling.

Aidan's blanket

Abi's blanket

My sister let Abi and Aidan open theirs as soon as they arrived (a few days before Christmas), so I was treated to a chorus of thank yous for their "wubbies."  I did use an actual pattern for Abi's, using it as an opportunity to learn something new.  Abi's blanket was a free pattern from Lion Brand Yarn, Child's Chevron Throw (pattern # 80787AD).  Instead of using 6 colors, though, I just used 2 and ran the dropped yarn up the side.

But wait, there's more!  I had to have something to do on the train.  So a BUNCH of people got scarves.  I made popcorn scarves, crossed double scarves and lots of curly ruffled scarves.  They were pretty fun and I gifted them to friends, Dave's family and my cousins.

Ruffle scarves for friends

Diagonal scarf for my cousin. I also made a pink one that looked more like camo.

Crossed double scarves for Stacy and Jo.  I also made one in cream wool for Madaline.

Popcorn scarves for Annette and Donna.

Popcorn detail.

I made a few other ruffled scarves, but forgot to take pictures. And I made myself a simple scarf out of lavender bamboo yarn that feels like silk.  It took me about one evening while watching Dave play video games.

Finally, as my gifts were completed (and so were the cookies), I found I wanted to keep making things.  So I went back to my charity projects and decided to check in on the Special Olympics scarves.  The good news is that instead of just being a project for the Washington State Special Olympics, the national Special Olympics organization has picked up the project.  The bad news is that they changed the colors from red and white to two shades of blue.  Which means all the scarves I already made can't be donated to them.  So, if you know of any charity organizations where I could send between 6-10 scarves, please leave me a comment!  I'm on the hunt for new charities and would welcome any ideas.

Class FAIL

All summer and into fall I've been diligently working of various crochet projects, including a bunch of scarves I've completed for Miles of Smiles while on the train. I'm doing ok once I know a stitch, but sometimes the patterns are a little difficult for my to understand. So I thought it was time for another class.

In August, Joann Fabrics had an open house, offering 50% off classes if you signed up that day. Thinking this was perfect opportunity, I signed up to Crochet 201, an intermediate course. That class was scheduled for this past Sunday, and although I was bitter that it fell during football hours, I committed. (And I grew even more bitter when I realized there was a slight possibility I would be able to watch the Steeler game since the Patriots didn't play on Sunday. But they didn't show it, so nothing lost.)

I arrived at the store and purchased my supplies, although my colors were completely different than the list suggested. I figured I'd make it work. I had brought a scarf project to work on while I waited for class to begin, so I went back to the classroom to settle in. Although it was 12:00 pm (when class was to begin), there was no one else in the room. This didn't look good.

But I kept positive and a few minutes later an employee (who I later found out was named Renee) came into the room to get something from a rather unkept administrative area in the room. I continued working on my project and after a few minutes, I asked her, "So, is the class still scheduled for today?"

Renee: Oh. I don't know. I thought you were the instructor since you were already here.

Me: Nope, I'm signed up for the class.

Renee: Ok. I don't really know anything about the education area, so let me see what I can find out.

She went away and a few minutes after that, another woman, not an employee, came into the classroom. I asked her if she was the instructor, and she said no. I filled her in on the situation. We ended up having a nice conversation and I was actually able to help her figure out an issue she was having with a pattern while we waited for an updated.

While we talked, Renee came back to say that they were trying to call the instructor, but were going to wait a few minutes to see if she was just running late. It was 12:15 pm.

Me: Ok. But at some point we need to decide that this isn't going to happen. Because I'm not waiting until 3 (class scheduled end time) to find out the instructor isn't coming.

Renee: Oh, no! I'll call her right now. I wouldn't expect you to wait that long.

And she did get on the phone. While I was speaking with the other student, Renee was able to get in touch with the instructor. When she hung up, she filled us in. Apparently in the less than 6 months that the store has been open, they've had 3 different Education Coordinators, but no actual education coordination. The instructor had expressed to the Coordinator that she was uncomfortable teaching the pattern for the class and wanted to cancel it until she could understand the pattern better (apparently there was an error). Either this wasn't communicated properly or the coordinator didn't understand or completely ignored it, because the class was never canceled.

Renee was very apologetic and took us up to the front to personally ring our refunds for the course (and for the materials I bought 30 minutes prior). So from the time I left the house to the time I left the store was about 45 minutes of time I won't get back. So I know you're wondering: Did you ask them to compensate for your time since it was their mistake.

No. And I have good reason, too.

From the moment I voiced concern to Renee, she immediately jumped in, to an area she had nothing to do with, figured out the problem, solved it, was genuinely apologetic, and without question returned the fees. She even told us when the Education Coordinator was going to be in and encouraged us to call or come in to speak with her.

So I didn't think it was necessary to suggest that she did something wrong and demand something for compensation of my time. And by the way, Renee isn't the manager. I actually never saw the manager, although I think Renee did talk to him during the process.

So I'm a little bummed that I didn't get to learn more. And I'm hesitant to want to take another class there. But I did get home before kick-off which was cool, even if it wasn't the Steelers.

Another Baby Shower

While Dave and I were camping, our friend Mere was honored at her baby shower. She's due with a little boy a few days after Kate is due. Unfortunately I wasn't able to go because the shower was in Maryland, and it didn't work out travel and work-wise. But I did send a gift.

Similar to Kate's, I sent a two sets of cute pajamas, a book so he can start reading right away, a gift card so they could pick up some necessities and something extra for Mere to pamper herself. And of course, I included my second baby blanket.


The dimensions were the same as Kate's, but I used a different stitch (a clamshell stitch) instead of the half-double/double crochet stitch pattern. I also made the little hat. Hey, he needs something to keep his little head warm when he leaves the hospital. He'll probably only be able to wear for a day or two anyway. It's really tiny.

Muchos good luck to Kate and Mere in the last couple months of their pregnancies! I can't wait to see their little guys!

Babies!

This is one of those good posts with lots of pictures!

On Saturday, Dave and I drove to Poughkeepsie for Kate's baby shower. This is Kate and her husband Andy.

We met Kate and Andy in college. Kate was actually the first person I met at college since we attended the same Orientation over the summer. I think we were in the same group and that's how we got to know each other. Funny thing--our moms also got along and when we got together for lunch they were already chatting away.

This is Kate's bump. And Mere's bump too.

Actually this is from 2 weeks ago since the pictures I took on Saturday didn't show good bumpage.

Anyway, the day was gorgeous. The humidity finally broke after a month and we had blue skies the whole way. We arrived a little early and were able to help Kate's mom and sister finish getting ready. Since the day was lovely, the entire shindig was outside. Kate's parents tented a portion of the lawn for the baby shower activities. And then the boys utilized other parts of the lawn. But more on that later.

Since boys were also welcome, we enjoyed lunch first and the followed it up by sending off the menfolk to do their thing while we ooh'd and ahh'd and made a fuss over Kate, presents and Baby Henry (shut up, Andy. That's his name.)

It didn't come out too well, but the suggested name on that entry is in fact Henry.

There was only one game which was pretty cute. Kate's mom had gotten a ton of baby socks and split them into two piles. Each team had to sort, match and fold their socks, the first team done being the winner. Some of the socks were pretty cute and Kate certainly shouldn't have to buy any for a while.


So while we were doing this, the guys were playing golf. On the premises. Yup. Kate's dad had set up a 9 hole course and split the guys into twosomes. Each twosome got 2 clubs and each player got a foam golf ball with which to work his magic. Dave said it was a great time (although he's says he won, so maybe that's why). They did seem to be having a good time, though.

Yeah, apparently half these guys never even played golf before. And the other half didn't realize they were foam balls.

Transcript of conversation between Kate and Andy after the golf game:

Kate: How'd you do?
Andy: I got a 46.
Kate: On 9 holes?
Andy: Yeah.
Kate: Is that good?
Andy: Uhhh...No.

Ok, so here's the part I'm really excited about. My gift to Kate and the baby! I've been itching for a month to tell you about this, but I know Kate reads this, so I couldn't spoil the surprise.

I'd gotten some great gift suggestions from another friend who recently had a baby, so I put together a basket with some essentials and some fun stuff. I bought a sturdy basket they can use in the baby's room for whatever needs to be corralled. I had to get some Boston Red Sox gear (Kate is a huge fan, her dad not so much. Stupid Yankees.), a book because every baby needs a library, and some essentials from the drug store because you don't know you need it until you need it. Dave's contribution was the Bordeaux's Butt Paste. It was also Andy's favorite part.

My favorite part, however, was this:

My first baby blanket! It's not perfect--there are a few imperfections on the blue edging that I attempted to even out with the border, but I'm proud of it. I did it in about a week (yeah, that first week in July where it was almost 100 degrees everyday I was playing with yarn), mostly during the drive to Allentown with Dave's mom for his cousin's fiance's bridal shower. Kate and her mom also crochet and Kate's mom made them an absolutely gorgeous crib blanket, but I know that babies like to spit up,so hopefully this can serve the purpose when the other is in the wash, or maybe work for travel.

The beautiful blanket from Kate's mom.

Overall it was a great day. I'm so glad we were able to go and see Kate and Andy again and celebrate with them. I can't wait to meet Baby Henry! (Andy--seriously, just accept the inevitable.)

Helping Others Through My New Hobby

I've become a little obsessed with my new hobby.

I'm really enjoying crocheting and have been occupying my evening time with new projects. I've also spent a bunch on yarn (always on sale or with coupons, though!) and am trying to complete the projects I've started. Most of them are unfinished because I've run out of the yarn needed. So I start something else until I get back out to Michael's or Joann Fabrics. So it's not that I've lost interest in a project--I've just decided I'd rather be working on something new than not working on anything at all.

However, I've also determined that I can only give so many people in my life a scarf for Christmas (or a bag or a blanket), so I've been trying to think of another outlet. While looking online for free patterns today, I stumbled upon a listing of charities to send completed projects that will be donated to people in need. The resources run the gambit of needing blankets or hats for newborn babies to lap blankets for the elderly to scarves for the homeless, both locally and nationally. Ultimately, I imagine I'll create something for several of these organizations, but there was one that really caught my eye, mostly because I'm new to this and my skills are still limited. And because this charity is something I can donate a lot to in a short amount of time.

Miles of Smiles is a group associated with the 2011 Special Olympics Washington State Winter Games which will be held in March 2011. The goal is to create/collect 2,500 scarves in order to distribute one to each athlete at the games. I love this idea. Using many different patterns in the same color and brand of yarn, this is a fantastic idea to use my new creative outlet and help out a good cause.

This picture is from the Miles of Smiles blog tracking the progress of their effort. These are just some of the scarves donated by crocheters.

As a person used to volunteering on a regular basis (I was a Big Sister, served in my church growing up, helped out in the community for a long time), since moving to Massachusetts, I've been looking for some new way to do my part in making the world a little brighter. It's been a struggle with my work schedule and commute, but this is one way I can contribute. I can even do this on the train, so I should be able to make several scarves in a relatively short period of time.

I'll keep you updated on my progress and would love to learn of any deserving charities that I might be able to contribute to.

First Project Completed

I don't usually do New Year's resolutions.

I know June is a random time to mention this, but trust me, I'm not going crazy (or crazier than usual).

Anyway, I don't usually do resolutions because I can't think of any that aren't standard (be healthier, work out more, stop eating crap) and then the next thing I know, it's February and it's too late to consider it a New Year's resolution anyway, so I don't bother.

But this year, with my 30th birthday looming, I decided I wanted to do something. Not make a resolution to not do something. I decided to take up a hobby. And I would give myself the whole year to figure it out.

Growing up, I watched my mom crochet on a regular basis. If a baby was being born, my mom was making a beautiful afghan. She made me a funky furry scarf that I love and even got involved in making matching scarves for her entire choral group. Evenings spent watching TV usually meant she also had hook in hand. I expressed interest after college and she gave me her old book (and by old, I mean from the early 70s) and showed me a few things. However, my lack of coordination was apparent and I gave up. Gave up, but never lost interest. That book, the ball of yarn and two hooks she gave me always had a place in my home for the last 6 years. Occasionally I would pick them up and then quickly put them down, knowing I couldn't figure it out.

So as part of the reinvention of me at age 30, I decided to give crochet a chance. In January, I bought two books (in addition to the classic from Mom), a skein of yarn, and a bunch of hooks. Diligently I read the first book, Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet by Nancy Queen and Mary Ellen O'Connell, without picking up my other tools. I needed to understand what I was doing. The pictures in the book were great, the language was interpreted for me, and I really felt like I was getting a good foundation of understanding how to do this.

Turns out my reading comprehension skills are not what I thought they were. I was able to successfully make my foundation chain and slip stitches, but could not for the life of my figure out how to make my fingers interpret the words to make a single chain crochet. Dammit.

So I opened the other book, just a basic guide with step by step instructions and illustrations. Moving right along, I got confirmation that what I knew was correct. On to the single crochet--do X (see figure 1.) Ok, success. Do Y (see figure 2)--yup, makes sense. Do Z (see figure 3). Perfect, this is where I screw up! Wait. Where's figure 3? ARGH! Yes, the book referenced a figure they didn't print. The exact figure that would have shown me what I was doing wrong.

So I put my books, yarn, and hooks into a bag and left them by the couch. I needed to step away and couldn't devote myself to figuring it out anymore. I blamed my abandoning the craft on my busy work schedule, since I was working long hours between February and May, but I left the materials in plain sight to taunt me into giving it another try when I was ready.

In May, a big, brand new JoAnn Fabrics store opened at our local mall. I had gotten an email saying they were offering 50% off all their scheduled classes if you signed up during their grand opening celebration. A class is exactly what I needed to tackle this beast. I went in, found they were offering a class on Basic Crochet and then learned it was going to be at 6:00 pm on a Wednesday. A day I was scheduled to work until 6:00 pm and after my commute, probably wouldn't be home until 8:00 pm. I declined, and then hemmed and hawed about it. I actually walked out of the store. And then I thought, "No, this is something I want to do, and I'll just tell them I have to leave early that day." I would never leave early when I was scheduled late (and overtime was involved) but this was something I wanted for myself. So I turned around and signed up.

The class was perfect. It was the instructor and one other student, so I really got the attention I needed. Someone to physically show me what I was doing wrong and catch me when I did it. In that 2 hours, I learned a lot. We didn't actually make a project, but I had a big piece with all kinds of stitch patterns on it and felt confident I could go back and do a project from my books.

I started with a bag, the first project in the Chicks with Sticks book. I've almost got one panel done, and then I'll start the other panel and put them together. It's a very relaxing hobby and I've been working on it in front of the TV and in the car (for long road trips, like when we went to L's wedding). My goal is to get to the point where I don't need the whole book and can do projects on the train.

Knowing that we have more road trips coming up (we're going to Pittsburgh this weekend), I went to Michael's on Saturday and bought a bunch more yarn. Another project in the book was a curly scarf and I thought it would be the perfect quick project in the car.

Sunday night, we were watching TV and I wanted to play with my new yarn, so I started the scarf. Within an hour and a half, I had almost finished it. Last night, I put in the last 30 stitches, tied off the ends and voila! My first finished project.


Here's a little more of the detail:



Not my best photos--they're from my phone. The scarf is 38 inches long. Which is not as long as you think it is. I think I'll adjust the pattern and make it longer. I told D last night that we have to stop at Michael's and get more yarn tonight. I'm definitely making this project again!