One Thing After Another....

...to steal a bit of a phrase from my BFF.

This past week has been hectic.  My DFIL (the father of my husband's first wife) fell and broke his hip. He is 94 and a rare bird to say the least. Very bright and articulate, and most times quite a grumpy fellow. His daughter passed away in June of 2002 and his wife passed away in September that same year. He is fairly angry that he, the ornery one in the family, is still here when the rest of his family members, sans four of his children, are already waiting on the other side for him.

Well, I figured he was a goner for sure but he came through the hip replacement with flying colors. As long as he is on drugs he seems to be a pretty happy and gregarious fellow, too!

This incident has taken its toll on him, but hubby and I have visited him every day to the point of wearing out - so now he and I are trading off every other day. We take him goodies, or items he needs, pick up his mail and deliver it, intervene when necessary, etc. - and at least he isn't into long visits so we are able to have time in the day for ourselves.

Don't get me wrong. I am delighted to be able to see him heal, to be able to make him smile, and to bring whatever love and brightness I can into his life. It is just that it has been time consuming and I haven't attended to as much as I would like.  

We just had his oldest son and his now only daughter visit us a week or so ago, so I am thankful they were able to be with him when he was healthier and could get out and about. He did fall again when he decided he could get out of bed on his own, but thankfully he did not hurt himself and seems to realize THAT isn't a good idea right now.

So - when you have a moment say a prayer for Dick that he will be at peace with his world, will heal quickly, and go back to his abode contently. I do love him so. My dad passed away when he was 51 and I turned 18. My mom, who would have been the same age as Dick, passed away when I was 41 (many, many moons ago). Having Dick around has been a real blessing to share his thoughts and memories of the years my parents would have shared with him in space and time.

Count your blessings.....

Yet another month goes by - here's a Spider for you!

I started working on this spider last year to send to Liz, a friend on Ravelry. It is made with an F hook and very tight stitches - and I did not notice that the spider was HUGE when I started the pattern. This is one of Gudrun Kulich's wonderful fantasy type patterns. She has a very large and spectacular selection of all sorts of dragons and other interesting Fairy Tale characters (Amigurumi Artist). Intricate, thoughtful, and provocative patterns - all for free. All large. ;o) Her latest patterns are really awesome.

The body of the Mexican Red Knee Spider is 17 inches in circumference, and from top to bottom, beginning circle to the finished part, it is 9 inches. All without the rest of the body parts.  When I started to finish off the body I realized there had not been any note to stuff it! So, here I am punching through all the stuffing through a tiny hole ! Not the easiest job, but doable. Just make sure when you get her pattern that you read it and make note of where you might want to start the stuffing process.

Gudrun's pattern is very precise as to the body parts - it isn't a pattern that you can whip through as I am finding out. However, it is a satisfying, albeit LONG, pattern process. I hope to have a great deal more finished in the next few weeks.

Has anyone tried one of her amigurumi characters?