Boy, Oh Boy!

It's MAY! I am happy to be making a post on the First Day of May...rather than the middle of May and then again at the end. I still have no idea what happened to April! I can't believe it escaped me so quickly!

As I mentioned in my last post, I need to remember my little "personal pledge" for 2011: Finish As Much As Possible. In honor of that promise to myself, I chose to go back to a project that I started.... I don't know when.... Maybe January or February. Some time around then, I realized that nearly everyone was pregnant. Yes, I have baby fever. Yes, I would love one more Little Darling... a Little Darling Jr, I guess :) But I am serious when I say that EveryOne is Preggers! I have never logged on to Facebook and seen so many ultra-sound pictures at one given time in history the way that I have been experiencing now.

Some time ago, I started a slew of projects for my pregnant friends and new mamas. I finished the girl set, and I couldn't recognize myself in the mirror. Me?! Finishing something? What?? Yeap! I did! Didn't I? And I am about to do it again with this project. I now have 3 friends who are having baby boys.

So I have this little blanket for a friend who is due this summer. It's about big enough for a carrier blanket. As with the girlie set, I am going to make a larger blanket...and a little cardigan and hat.

I really like the colors. I think they are fun and cute.
But I want to do something different for the larger blanket. I love, Love, LOVE making granny squares. They are so much fun, but I think, for the larger blanket... I will make it out of hexagons instead. I made some, but I won't show them yet. I am not 100% sure if I am excited enough about them to keep making more. Now that I look at them, I feel like I might be soon changing my mind and going back to some variation of squares.

And as for what else will be in the baby basket... I don't know. I find it difficult to come up with things for little boys. Less color options. Less clothing options. Less crochet stitch and pattern options. So everything will be completely up in the air for this project. The only thing I know for sure is that I will be finishing it soon. I have another little boy basket to create by this summer as well. The crazy of it: I think both friends are due nearly at the same time--WILD!

So this will give me some Opportunities to try new color combos and new patterns. I can't reveal much for now, but I can tell you this..............

For this project, I will be using these colors, in this yarn as well as 100% cotton yarn for the clothing items.

Yup, that's all I got.

HAPPY MAY!

And if you live in my city, or have a thing for horses...

HAPPY DERBY TO YA!

Final Days of April

This month went by so fast! I didn't even realize that it was over until I spent some time this morning to read blogs. Well, I shouldn't say "some time". I get so hooked on what everyone is doing these days and what other project ideas there are, it really goes on forever. And after I am finished with my favorites, I start checking out the links to the things they are reading as well. So, yes, eh-hemmm, I spend a reasonable amount of time, skimming through blogs :) They make me happy.

This month hasn't been a complete waste, yet, I need to take a moment to stop myself and really think: Did I finish all I could? Did I do everything I wanted? The answer to both of those questions is a quick, serious NO!

So, with hopes that this rainy, stormy, electricity lacking, sometimes cold and other times not so cold, sinus infected Spring time is coming to a permanent end... I am making a pledge to start something new for May that will continue until about October. You will have to wait to see what this "secret mission" is. I call it a "mission" because it's bigger than a project. If a project were the result of an Idea Baby that was birthed and nutured into something practical, yet beautiful and tangible... then the "mission" could only be compared to a very fertile mother, who sits back enjoying the beautiful, colorful fruits of her labor.

I have been going back and forth with whether going through with the "secret mission" is something I could actually see myself starting, but more importantly FINISHING. I think the answer to that, after much thought, journaling, and prayer is finally a YES!

I just couldn't let the entire month pass without making at least one more little post. The next time you hear from me it will be May -- Derby time in my city! I will have started my Mission, and I will have forced myself to do something I seriously don't enjoy: Decorating. My new office is horrendous! Almost frightening, really. I love color, but I don't naturally have the decorator's knack. I won't be able to continue enjoying this office space if I don't cheer it up with something.... even if that "something" is me sneaking in here in the middle of the night with paint filled balloons and tossing them at the walls! Ok, well, that deifnitely won't happen. I just got this job, and I don't need to be fired due my lack of impulse control and my unconventional methods of office decor. But this little space of mine will transform! Mark my words!

***** Unitl Next Time!!! *****

Idea Overload!

Whew! I cannot believe it is already FIFTEEN days into April and I am just now making a post! Goodness gracious! I think that time gets away from me easier than I could ever imagine... Right now, it's noon-ish, and I have attempted "relaxing" all day. Which hasn't worked at all. So now, I am enjoying my "breakfast of champions" = some bread, some cheese, and some carbonated & caffienated beverage. I had a bowl of Crunch Berries for "first breakfast" earlier. I can assure you that I have been quite busy, working on random little projects. This is the first time in my life that I have been completely focused on creating things for My Own Home. I usually am inspired by others. I am always excited to take on the task of creating something that is a form of expression through the viewpoint of another. Working third shift, I am often asleep in the day, and I don't spend much time in my apartment. I have errands to run, driving my Little Darling to school, activities, and whatnot. Well, a few weeks ago, I started to seriously interview and apply for a new job. As much as I love staying up all night, watching movies and working on my projects in the quiet of the night, doing the overnight shift thing is soooooo not working for the Family Life. With that said, I started to stay awake preparing for interviews and sending out more resumes for job opportunities. So here I am, on my laptop, working and working... and suddenly I stop and take a small look. I am ashamed and frightened all at the same time! My apartment is a DISASTER! I don't only mean in regards to disorganization, but I really mean it lacks personality, intrigue, style, design...and COLOR! If my Little Darling hadn't taken markers, crayons, and pencils to nearly all the walls and closets, you wouldn't hardly believe that we have been in this place for TWO years! We have several new furniture pieces and we even finally gave in and found some picture frames, but there is no sign of real "Life" inside! And that is where my little journey begins... Just for a moment here, I would like to A- point out that I made all this happen in about a week's time. Ohh! Go Me! Focused :) And B- This is my dining area, with the table removed. Nothing. Is. There.

Please continue...

First, my Little Darling has gone through great lengths to sabotage her bedroom. Her walls were completely destroyed, and so I painted them, but she fixed that with Sharpies, chalk, and crayons. At one point, her closet was in all right condition. It too, now, is covered in markings and something that I can only possibly make out to be food. She had a toy box, but it broke...most likely from her jumping on, in, and off of it. Now her room is in desperate need of a mother's touch! A "Maternal Intervention".

I am excited to RE-PAINT her room and DECORATE everything anew, and MAKE her some cute little items that will DEFINE her space! I am thinking a rainbow of colors. My Little Darling changes her mind about which color is her preferred favorite on a regular basis. Meaning, everyday, she has a new favorite color and is very passionate about her commitment to that hue. Yes, she is soooooo My Kid, commitment issues and all- hahaha! :) As of right now, I am working on 4 blankets for her. One SUPER large rainbow blanket, which is nearly finished. I am also nearly finished with the Tacky Blanket. Oh! This is such a FUN project! I, for once, didn't care whatsoever about the colors and the layout or the design. I think that is what's kept me so interested in the project and how I am able to finish it so easily! But I'm sad it's almost over... I chose to connect the squares using pink... I will admit that I wish I had a collection of brighter colors. I am so boring! If it looks like MUD, I'm on board. With the exception of pink. I Love Pink. But it doesn't help much when it's surrounded by safari greens, browns, greys, blacks, and off whites. I am working on this, however. The Rainbow Blanket is just me getting warmed up!

The last two blankets are more of sewing projects.... Yes, sewing. But we will get to that later. One is to be a quilt and the other is a simple fleece blanket with some birdie applique. I love birds! Anything that reminds me of spring-- birds, flowers, trees, insects, fish, and rainbows.

EUREKA! And there it is: Spring Paradise, as the theme for my Little Darling's bedroom! *Sigh* I can't wait to start working on things to really get the project going today.

My dining room is coming along, slowly, but ever so surely. My table cloth is nearly large enough to cover the entire table. Can you believe I crocheted another FOUR balls of yarn into this? This whole thing, as it stands is EIGHT balls of cotton yarn. It's kind of exciting to see how much yarn is going into this little table cover...

While I am on break in between jobs, I am going to PAINT! I haven't painted a single thing in 3 years. I hope it turns out well..... I also hope my paints haven't dried up! I have had some of the tubes of paint for about 5-6 years now *** Embarrassed! Either way, I paint very quickly and diligently. This will be the first time I use my easel! The Hubs will be very happy that, after 4 years, I will have finally gotten it a little messy. ...

I found these pictures of eggplants and pears on this organic recipe webpage and this gourmet recipe page. I thought I would buy them fresh and make a shadow box, etc. I don't have money to waste. I wouldn't eat 3-4 eggplants alone. The Hubs was overwhelmed on a trip to Germany when my Opa had him eating eggplant-everything. Even the sauce on home made pizza was "eggplanted". Since then, he won't touch the things. My Little Darling, as of now, "only eats stwah-berries and pasta, Mom". And pears? ...they are just nasty and smell weird! So I will find a way to fuse these images together and work out the shadow details and whatnot...and YES! Finally, my dining room will look like something other than an off white box with a table in it. *Deep Breath. I can't even wait!

I have a slew of other ideas, but I will stop here for now. Get ready for some serious Ta-dah-ing over the next two weeks. I am quite focused equally on all of these projects, and I am surprising myself at my accomplishments. Although, when working on 10 things at once, everything moves sluggishly slow towards completion. But I have to admit, I enjoy every inch along the way. So sorry for this suuuuper long post. I reckon if I posted more often, I wouldn't find myself with so much to say! Have a great weekend!

Tacky Tacky Tacky!

The other night, I was reading up on one of my favorite blogs, and I was going through pictures of Lucy's work. I was also checking out nearly every link in her blog to see where inspiration is derived. Suddenly, I got this wild, but not entirely surprising realization: I am too afraid of color! Every project I make is pre-designed/ pre-meditated. I have to draw a diagram, after several weeks of thought, and several swatches to test color combinations. No wonder I never finish anything! It's completely boring just planning it out, so when I actually start the creation part, I have had enough of the project already! So a few nights after this realization, I grab all this yarn And I take my entire stash of 100% cotton yarn that I have been collecting for various projects over the course of 2 years. I'll be perfectly honest, I have never ever ever made anything from any of this yarn. Ever. I think my plan was to just build a collection of each color available! And I just started to make all these random squares. I wasn't planning anything out. The only "Plan" I made was to see how many squares I could make before I would have to repeat a color combination. As of right now, I have about 30 squares completed and NONE of them are the same :) A small sort of accomplishment! I will admit that this blanket is TACKY!!!!! Goodness gracious! Who would ever be proud of such a thing? Ha! Well, I decided that I wanted to make it for my Little Darling who needs something to sleep with during nap time at daycare. I'd seen 2-3 hand-crafted blankies in the cubbies of her classmates, and thought to myself, "Tacky has a home!" I am looking forward to completing this tacky assortment of squares and assembling them. I am hoping to be finished near the end of the week! And working on this blanket made my mind drift back to a project I started back in November, when I was first learning to make African Flowers. I think this was to be a pillow or something. Who knows?! But I am glad I never throw away projects in which I lose interest. As long as I can remember the color of yarn, the pattern/design, and the hook used, I can always pick up the pieces and keep going later. So when I am done with my Tacky Blanket, I will work on this one. This will be equally as colorful, but just with a tad more of a plan in mind! I can't wait!!! I have also been working on my table cloth. Since I was having allergic reactions to the acrylic yarn, I decided to use 100% cotton yarn to make a table cloth, and I started all over. I finished this in one night at work. Can you believe this is FOUR balls of yarn?! I will need to buy more yarn to continue the project, but I am getting really excited about this as well. I can literally see my dining room area coming to life. And check out the difference between the acrylic yarn... ... and the 100% cotton. I drapes nicer and it look more... Almost lustrous, I guess. Once I have this table cloth finished, I will move on to some cushions, pot holders, a table runner, some place mats, a center piece (for which I am already REALLY excited to hunting down supplies) and, of course, let's not forget... my *Dream* of a large painting that has eggplants and pears. Sounds crazy? You just wait! It will be glorious! ' Til Next Time! Too-da-loooooo!

Happy Little Birthday

It's been years since I have made a big deal about turning another year older. I used to enjoy making the cakes, drinks...the guest lists, the hassle. I think that as I get older, it becomes less about what I do on my special day and more about who I am fortunate enough to spend time with.

Today, I got Several messages and birthday wishes from all my friends and family :) I couldn't be happier or more thankful. I wish I could knock on each one's door and give them a hug in person and maybe take a short stroll with them, while we catch up. Unfortunately, the digital gratitude will have to suffice for the time being.


I was able to do something today that I have wanted to do for some time now. By some time, I mean about a year! I love being outside, walking around, just enjoying the environment and air. My severe allergies (to all trees & grass) and my hectic work/school schedules haven't allowed me the time to just enjoy my surroundings the way I have desired. Today, around brunch time, I had an interview for a new job. Afterwards, rather than waiting for my ride home, I went for a walk.



A load of these little yellow flowers were waiting for me outside the door of my interview. I know they weren't there the day before, because I was just at this building the other day for an interview that was rescheduled. In my little mind, these flowers showed up for my birthday! Dandelions used to be in stiff competition with Daisies for my favorite flower. I went with Daisies, but I still love Dandelions too.

I love this part of town. I miss living there, although it's really not suitable for a family. My Little Darling wouldn't have very many children to play with or any parks to go to. But the sight of it.... Well, it just reminds me of good times.

A mural on a wall as I walked underneath the interstate.

These flowers weren't here Monday, and then Tuesday, they are on all the trees everywhere!

I think they are so beautiful. From a distance, I thought "Drats! These puffy flowers are the sole reason for my allergy attacks everyday". As I got closer, I wanted to pull one off a tree and wear it in my hair all day. Funny how perspective can change things.

I have no idea where this store is, but when I saw it...It just made me smile. A great, sunny, perfect day....and sight of this random, happy grocery store!

PIE! I love PIE! Specifically speaking, I love PIE from Homemade PIE & Ice Cream Kitchen. I prefer this particular Kitchen. I always get the Dutch Caramel Apple PIE with a scoop of Cinnamon Ice Cream. YUMMA YUMMA YUMMA-LICIOUS! This was birthday slice #1, and slice #2 for the week. I will be having yet another slice here shortly, when The Hubs returns from work.

Just know that I am Very Happy and Even More Thankful!

Project Rundown

I am SO excited! I have, well had at this point, 3 full days and 2 full nights off from work! Since it is the end of my first day off from work, I now have 2 days and nights, but I am thrilled either way.

Normally, when I have days off, I just sleep. For example, The Hubs and my Little Darling were out of town this past weekend. I slept about 15 hours per day! But these next days will be different. I have so many things that I have started to work on, but I can't come close to finishing them because I need things I can't have at work... like my toddler for fittings, my sewing machine, my dress form, etc. Being home these next few days will give me the perfect opportunity to really put a hurt on some of these little projects!

Project #1: Circles to Squares Afghan for My Little Darling I have been working on this for about 2 weeks now. I recently discovered that I am seriously allergic to this yarn, so I am not working on projects made from this yarn as diligently as I was before. What happens? My face breaks out right along with my chest and back. Gross, high school-like acne! The only thing that clears it up is using some anti-bacterial body wash...which also dries out my skin, therefore causing even more break-outs! Part of me is thinking: just finish the damn project and then be done with it; worry about the acne later! Another, louder part of me is screaming: you hated high school and most of it was due to your crazy skin issues; no way will we willingly relive those years over a damn blanket! But the allergy is worse than just a skin issue. The fibers that naturally come off the yarn make my nose bleed, when inhaled. Inhaling microscopic fibers is inevitable unfortunately. The Hubs suggested I wear a full on mask to prevent any exposure to the yarn fibers. Ha! Could you imagine!? The yarn also gives me not one sty on my eye.... nope. It's more like 5-7 irritating, painful, scratchy bumps across both eyelids, making it nearly impossible to function.

This is what the blanket will look like when finished. It also does not include the border of colorful squares... Or the fleece (which gives me hives because I am also allergic to this fiber as well) that will be on the bottom of it. I want this blanket to be soft and cuddly for my daughter, yet playful and interesting on the other side. While at the craft store today, I found the perfect, most adorable polka-dotted fleece fabric that will be a perfect match for this finished project. I need to see exactly how big the end result is before I buy the fabric. Fleece is expensive, so I don't want to buy too much and have some odd shaped piece of it left over that I can't use. I also don't want to have to attach more pieces because I didn't buy enough to begin with. Either way, the circles into squares does not take very long at all, so I am hoping to finish another 3rd of the blanket in the next few days, while I am at home. Having serious allergic reactions is always better to endure while in the comfort of my own four walls, with Benadryl and a pillow right on hand!

Project #2: Granny Square Cardigan for My Little Darling
I was doing one of my usual browsing through pictures, blogs, and so on for inspiration and ideas. I revisited this pattern and decided to give it a go! Unfortunately, like many patterns, I am having to revise this one to fit a little person. I am not a mathematician, so we will see if all of my calculations work out! If not, I am sure my Little Darling will enjoy dressing up one of her animals with the end result. Ha!

Project #3: Asymmetrical Cardigan for My Little Darling
This is based on the same pattern I used to make infant cardigans. Again, I am using my "artistic math abilities" to modify this pattern to fit a pre schooler. So I am not sure what the end result will be as of yet, but I know that if it is a disaster, my Little Darling will be more than happy to play with it in some imaginary fairytale theme that she conjures up. Might I add that this yarn does not cause any allergic reactions and is SUPER DUPER SOFT because it is 100% cotton! My new safe haven-- all natural fibers! No more acrylic, polyester, nylon, viscose or whatever else is used. I'm going all natural, baby!

Project #4: Easy One to Two Hour Sewing Projects
I have these cute patterned fabrics. All of them are 100% cotton, so I need not fret about allergic reactions. As mentioned in previous posts, I am terribly afraid of my sewing machine. However, if I see another blog where someone has sewn something, embroidered something, or in any other way, shape, or form used a sewing machine to create something ah-mazing, I am going to SCREAM! I have to learn how to sew! The original plan was to take a 10 week sewing class. I didn't have the money to spare for that, thanks to too many trips to the craft store, but I do have all the materials and machinery needed. I am going to start with some super-simple one hour sewing-for-dummies-type of patterns. Nothing that requires too much fabric, skills, or knowledge. If you never read another post from me...it will be due to the somber fact that my sewing machine has eaten me whole.

Project #5: Teaching Myself to Knit
For the past 3 months or so, I have been seriously interested in knowing how to knit. I have seen some seriously adorable patterns, not that I will be ready for patterns for another year or so. I have also realized that you can do more with knitting than crochet, which is really exciting! I have been having different people teach me a few things every here and there, but I still don't get it. So I went out and bought my very first knitting needles and some how-to literature. Something tells me I will need more than the books... I might need a DVD, a personal tutor, and a small miracle to grant me the gift of coordination! I am thrilled to learn just the basics for now, and I have two more days to try!

I have absolutely no intention of finishing so many projects. I am just glad to be able to have the time, space, and supplies I need in order to work on these things. I hope to have some very interesting results before I go back to work Thursday night!

Also.......... tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY (woo-hoo-hoo!!!!) And tomorrow, I will reveal a very special project that I am to begin. But you have to wait until then -- Wink*

Oooh La La -- TA DAH!

I am soooooo happy to show what I have finished. I am so excited that I plan to include whatever "revealing of completed projects" in their own little blog posts from here on out!

Some weeks ago, when I last blogged, I showed a series of baby items that I am working to complete. With the exception of one baby who is already here, I have just a few more weeks to finish everything else!

I ended up missing the baby shower of a friend, which under normal circumstances, would give me "permission" to drop the project. I am happy that I didn't.

I finished her little baby gift basket!


You can't see all the contents in this picture, but there are plenty more to come!

First, I want to confess that my plan did originally include items that were sewn. I had this uber-cute Hello Kitty baby pink fabric that I was going to use to make a bib... and there as something else that was going to be sewn, but after struggling with my fear of being eaten alive by my sewing machine, I didn't even bother pursuing "mystery sewing project #2".

There was also supposed to be a crochet hat in the mix. I said "NO" to that as well. The baby will be born in warmer months and...well, I know when I am getting eager to be finished. When I get that "Just be done already" itch, I have learned, with the completion of this project, to just go with it! Finish what I can so that it seems complete, and then move on to the next thing! My problem lies in that I get bored and try to force myself to finish things. Then it becomes a chore. Boring, time-consuming, annoying chore. But not if I listen to that little, easily distracted voice telling me what it's time to call it quits, wrap it up!

And that is what I did with this project. I had finished the larger blanket some weeks ago first.




I then started and finished this smaller blanket. It's to be thrown over the carrier. I hope it's the right size. I never had a carrier for my Little Darling. We bought our stroller in Germany and it came with some sort of .... something else!




I am always dreaming of these projects I start. In my dream, this one had some colorful flowers on it. These were some of the first flowers I have crocheted!


These flowers, I just made up out of my head. I was tired of trying the complicated flower patterns and failing!


But, you what they say... "When you stop trying, it happens for you!" I was on the brink of leaving the blankie out of the whole project, when I gave it one more try! I was able to make a flower (***HAPPY DANCE***). I got this pattern from this book. This book is great because it has a diagram, AND words, AND pictures of the completed motifs. Yes, I need THAT much help in order to follow a pattern. But it was worth it. I think the flower is precious!

I actually just finished and stitched all the flowers to the blanket last night at work! I am happy. I had to fight myself to complete my vision. Good thing I won.... against... myself- HA!

In the mean time, in order to distract myself from my struggles of deciding on colors for flowers and dealing with my terrible lack of competence in the department of following patterns, I worked on this little cardigan.


I found the pattern for this on this blog. Ok, this is the basic pattern in the blog. I made the bottom part shell stitches instead. I thought it was cuter. You can tweak it to make any stitch you like. I will be playing around with this basic design and coming up with some cute little baby cardis in the coming weeks as I complete the other baby projects!

I also made these little booties.


Well, these are actually just some ballet flats... maybe some ankle socks, depending on how you view it! I got the basic pattern from this blog. This is one of my favorite blogs. Lisa is so creative and always has some inspiration pictures on her Flckr site. If you are bored and looking for some creative motivation, check Lisa out! If you are a Knitter, she has lots of knitting projects too!


This is the little set, finished. I guess a hat wouldn't have been too terrible to make--- but NO! I'm done with this! One more thing, and I will explode! Hahaha!

Well..... there are two more things actually, which is why the hat never happened.

I wanted to embellish some onesies! I got some "easy" sewing patterns for baby stuff, but my sewing machine grew these angry red eyes and started drooling.... so I went to Hobby Lobby and bought some onesies to embellish.


In hindsight, it would have been cheaper to grab a pack of onesies from Target or Wal-Mart, but I am happy that I picked these up and gave it a go! I have embroidered things before. I am not terrific at it, but I am working to grow my skills! Let me just say, if you are new to the needlework/ embroidery game: DO NOT EMBROIDER JERSEY KNIT FABRICS ON YOUR FIRST PROJECT!!! I found this out the hard way. It kept stretching and I couldn't get a picture on there....

BUT! I am very happy with how cute they turned out!


My little sister got me hooked on to all this Kawaii things. Everything has to be **CUTE ^.^** My favorite, when it comes to the **CUTE ^.^** are all the foods and sweets! Ha! Can you tell I'm a foodie?! All the fruits and veggies, the toast and sweets, the dumplings and sushi. They're so funny and adorable. And what's sweeter than a baby girl? Uh, NOTHING!

Well, when it was all said and done, I was happy that I tried new things-- the onesies and the flowers. I was happy that I used some well-known techniques to finish the project faster -- granny squares and basic double crochet for the blankets. I will most definitely be trying several new items as I finish the other 2 baby baskets I have left. And go figure! I have THREE more pregnant friends after I am done with those baskets! Lucky for me, I love to make things for little ones!

Until next time! HUGS :)