Dolls for Christmas

Last year I purchased two American dolls for my granddaughters. As it turns out, they were really too young and did not appreciate them.  The eldest is into Barbie Dolls, which are so CHEAP now that she has a dozen.  All naked. All with ratty hair. :o)  All well used and loved.  She has a great time with them, they are just the right size to hold in her little hands, and I have seen her play for hours making up stories and using her imagination.

This year I thought I would make her a little crocheted doll that might give her the same pleasure. She is a tad older, but do not expect her to be treating this doll a whole lot better than her Barbies.

I have posted before about the creations on the ByHook/ByHand blogspot.  I am in love with the little Kaitlyn, a little cat-eared pocket spirit. DARLING! So if you have a cat, you'd love one, too.  If you have a friend that loves cats, that friend would love one!  But more importantly, if you have a granddaughter or two, you can be sure those little girls would be in heaven to get their hands on something so cute and precious.

Can you actually resist this precious little doll?????? And the pattern is FREE. You can do it! Get it, make it, and watch little eyes light up this Christmas

I'm Shopping Again - HELP!

I need a muzzle on my fingers.  This internet has really put a dent in my pocketbook.

Having lived in Japan I feel an affinity to all things Japanese.  I can still remember where we lived, although I was but a wee thing.

I can remember the sand piles in the middle of the road where they put the ammunition for some reason....to be picked up and moved, I think.  I lived in Post War Tachikawa. This is a photo of my younger brother who was born in Japan.  He is near one of those ominous sand piles.

  The women were gentle and loving and ever so talented. My "nanny" was Aokisan and I loved her so very much. Mom said she probably would have kidnapped me as she felt an affinity of me like I did her.  I wonder what every happened to her?

Now I like to collect Japanese crochet books.  I have a few already, but a few just doesn't seem enough.  Ms. Beverly found the site YesAsia for me.  I just purchased several more books today....these aren't cheap, BUT there are always more patterns than you can shake a stick at! (To improperly end a phrase in a preposition).

I purchased four new books.  This is one of them....full of shawls and shrugs:

Do you shop when you are happy, or like me when life throws you a curve ball?  I find that spending my money on something which makes me feel as if I am in control, and that I can make some changes in my life tends to perk me up.  At least as long as the browser if open!!  And, too, when the items arrive. Then I have to find space, and some day go back and look at it.

THEN I feel really good when I end up passing it along to someone else who will use it.  Isn't that just the way life goes!??

May your life be full of blessings!

They Are Finally Together

THEY ARE FINALLY TOGETHER ....

Judy got married and had 13 children.  Her husband, Ted, died of cancer.  She married again and she and Bob had 7 more children.  Bob was killed in a car accident.  Judy again married, and she and John had five more children.

Judy finally diet, after having 25 children.  Standing before there coffin, the preacher prayed for her.  He thanked the Lord for this very loving woman and said, "Lord, they are finally together.

Ethel leaned over and quietly asker her best friend Margaret...

"Do you thing he means her first, second, or third husband?"

Margaret replied, "I think he means her legs, Ethel ... her legs."

Back to the real world.....Christmas is around the corner!

Hey there....I'm starting to feel like hide and seek - sometimes I'm here, sometimes I'm gone - now you see me, now you don't!

Hubby is settling into a rhythm of chemo and meds, me being the nurse, so I think I can start picking up some of my own personal threads and get back to "normal" for a bit.

I have been working on potholders, as some of you know, and lately have been looking at the ones by Delights-Gems who is a prolific pattern maker.  The thing is, she doesn't just make a square potholder with an edge, she makes AWESOME potholders and isn't shy about sharing them with everyone.  They are crocheted (all as far as I can tell) and they are beautiful.

On Ravelry she is simply known as Delights. There is, however, nothing simple about her.  So, if you are yearning to have something super special for a Christmas present or for yourself, this is the place to go.  Although her patterns may not be as fast and quick as others, they are surely more rewarding and more interesting.

Only 72 days left before Christmas!!

BIG SCAM!!!

I've been scammed. I can't believe it....the kind of thing that I warn people about happened to my husband and I.  Had I answered the phone and heard what he said, then I would have known it wasn't my nephew, but he was talking to my husband first.

The problem is he SOUNDED like my nephew...who is a good guy who never gets in trouble.  Well, if you ever get a call from a "relative" in trouble (especially if it is in Canada) tell them to go to h#&&. :o)

We are out $3,000 - it won't kill us, but it does hurt us.  Hurts my pride worse than anything,  and I am usually more careful.

So if you get any Canada number like this one (1-514-553-4182)  it is a scam.  Many of those numbers are, and especially if they call you from a number that is a Google number.

Now that I have it all figured out I know that the people in CA called through the Google number - that they were in jail in Oceanside with some of those special cell phones - and then used another similar type Google Canada number...can't trace it.  Lost the money. Lost my pride, and during a time when we are underwater emotionally.

At least someone in Oceanside was able to get out of jail. GRRRRRRR.

Cute Crochet Patterns

Skymagneta is from Malaysia.  She has an extremely creative mind, a wicked crochet hook, and some fantastic patterns for small cute things. 

 I love, love, love her new sea turtle, but am also enamored with her mirrors.  Check her out!

It is quite amazing what the creative mind can come up with! 

Peace and good health be with you!

Dinner Tonight - Black Bean Salad

I have been at gatherings where this little beauty has been served as a side dish, but tonight I served it as the main salad for hubby and I.  Quite filling, and with some baked crackers it was just enough.  Now we will be having a little Marie Calendar Berry/Cherry pie - shared of course. I always give him the larger part, though, as he is the one who needs to maintain or gain weight.

I downloaded the app onto my iPad for Whole Foods Market.  It had quite the variety of recipes, and the neatest thing is that it has a food shopping list for you! I took the iPad with me, selected my dish for tonight, and then brought up the shopping list.  It is sooooo cool!

Unlike my BFF, Bev, I am not a cook.  I was once - but a Southern Cook, with a capital "S"!  All things fried. :o)  GOOD food, but not always healthy.  Due to some upcoming health problems of my own, and knowing that I just have to stay on my feet to care for hubby in the coming year, I decided to start working toward eating heart healthy - translated to almost vegetarian!  I'm doing fairly well for the most part. I have taken off six pounds (after putting on 20 trying to fatten up the hub) and that is really a blessing.

I have a problem in giving up milk for my coffee, nuts of any sort, and oils.  However, I have cut down on everything quite a bit. I eat very little of anything with meats of any sort, but still allow some.  I'm working toward getting to being a REAL vegan - or perhaps vegetarian.  There is a difference, I have found out.  My purpose isn't to do this for awhile, but to do this to change my life and get it pointed in the right direction. I'm almost at the age where I can't make changes, or the changes will be too late....gotta hit the ground running now, or not at all!

There are lots of books out there on the subject matter - and some great recipe books! So, if you are inclined to make a change in your life for the better start as fast as your life style will let you, but start.  Keep carrots around to munch on. Lots of crunch, and if you purchase the baby ones, they are sweet - an added bonus to those of us who crave the sweets!

Love to you all, and wishing you and your loved ones a healthy life.

Texting:  Since more and more people my age are texting there appears 

to be a need for a STC (Senior Texting Code). If you qualify for Senior Discounts this is the code for you. 

ATD:  At The Doctor's 

BFF:  Best Friend Fainted 

BTW:  Bring The Wheelchair 

BYOT:  Bring Your Own Teeth 

CBM:  Covered By Medicare 

CGU:  Can't get up 

CUATSC:  See You At The Senior Center 

DWI:   Driving While Incontinent 

FWBB:  Friend With Beta Blockers 

FWIW:  Forgot Where I Was 

FYI:  Found Your Insulin 

GHA:  Got Heartburn Again 

GGPBL:  Gotta Go Pacemaker Battery Low! 

GGLKI:  Gotta Go - Laxative Kicking In 

HGBM:  Had Good Bowel Movement 

IMHO:  Is My Hearing-Aid On? 

LMDO:  Laughing My Dentures Out 

LOL:  Living On Lipitor 

GGLWO:  Gotta Go - Lawrence Welk's On 

OMMR:  On My Massage Recliner 

OMSG:  Oh My! Sorry - Gas. 

ROFL... CGU:  Rolling On The Floor Laughing... And Can't Get Up 

TTYL:  Talk To You Louder 

WAITT:  Who Am I Talking To? 

WWNO:  Walker Wheels Need Oil 

What, ME crochet???

I'm alive. Barely.  Finished this design started by Beverooni of the sprained thumb. :o)  It was designed by Mona Modica from Creative Yarn Source.  It is her new Shilo sweater, made with Sinfonia, a mercerized cotton.  Just love the color!  She has a better photo on her web page of her finished product with a button. I opted to go without the button.  It's a beautiful pattern!

 

 

 

 

Look who took over.....

.....hubby's afghan!

Hubby and Dogs

Two are ours and one is the daughters. She, Patsy, is not a lap dog so was not comfy while I took the photo and jumped off as quick as the click! 

They are all becoming house dogs as they don't like being outside when it is so darn hot. Not as hot as Texas, though! Nor as humid as the south. Now THAT is miserable humid heat. 

I finished a square for a comfort'ghan that is being made up for one of our Ravelry friends who is going through some hard times. It is a calming color scheme....the photo isn't great as I took it on my iPod.

The starfish facecloth that I "angeled" to a person that did not receive from her partner in a swap. It's made with Hobby Lobby's I Love This Cotton...and I do! My BFF Bev turned me on to their line of goods. 

This is a long hot pad I made for the same person, but is from a different swap. Made it easier to go ahead and have the extra made for her when she got jilted in the other swap as I was already mailing her this.  She said her fav colors were pink, blue and bright orange. Luckily I had all three in cotton! ;o)  I actually liked the color combo - which is a strange one for me in general. Perhaps because it is only 3 colors. The flower pattern is by ColoradoMom on Ravelry if you are interested.

Back

Now speaking of comfort'ghan's - this one is a real winner!!!  This was made for ME by a bunch of wonderful ladies in our Vanna's Choice group. They went to all the trouble of making my favorite rose pattern in my favorite colors! Isn't this just beautiful!!! I cry every time I sit with it....very very comforting feeling to have it wrapped around me. The pattern is Victorian Rose and just isn't an easy one to make.  A tutorial was whipped up by Margaret so it would help all involved in making their square.

Now - what more could a weary heart ask for other than a reprieve????

I have it in my fav chair where I sit and watch TV in my bedroom. Hubby, who is hard of hearing, watches quite a bit of TV while he is trying to get use to his new cancer meds. I will escape to my quarters every now and again, curl up, and watch some happy shows...like House Hunters! ;o)

This is the beautiful border that Jamie did. She put the whole thing together and did more than a fabulous job. Her work is impeccable and a blessing to me in every way.

So from my house to yours, hope your a/c is working well, that you are resting, eating properly, and being good to all your loved ones.  All of the above is important to your health and theirs.

Hugs!

Time flies again...

I cannot believe just how often I am NOT posting.  If we are not traveling to Portland for medical reasons, we are having company, or visiting friends in far away towns.  I just don't seem to have time for myself these days.

Crocheting? WHAT is THAT?  I have made a few small projects for swaps, but those I finished long before now. I knew time would be short with the travels, so finished ahead of time. Right now I don't seem to have energy for anything short of playing a game on my iPad.

We had our THIRD water break, so they put in a new line. Now I am worrying that they did not cut the far lines but just capped them.  Will have to double check with the bossman to see what they did do. Sometimes the worker bees don't realize what is really needed. It was a capped line that started this whole thing of the hillside sliding down.

This is a photo of a dove which is not a) a natural inhabitant of North America, and b) rarely seen in the northern states, and c) even more rare in the North West area.  We have two here now - a couple. It is a Eurasian Collared Dove. Nearly all white.  The Ring-Necked Dove has more white and less grey.  Pretty little devil, eh?

I may have posted this before. Hubby and one of our visitors this summer. The red-headed grandchild and her older sister, minus one tooth. :o) These two are really beautiful little girls, and part of that beauty is that they are extremely nice and generally well behaved. Says Grandma.

Last, but NOT least is a photo of your's truly and our nephew from Texas, here to visit the uncle and grandpa - who will be 95 in September. Handsome dude!

As I said in my Facebook posting, there is a beige cami under the black cami! At least you can see it sticking out from underneath as proof! Also, no cleavage, so you know it is covered up! Sure looks strange, though!

Maybe some crochet posting next week after our next trip to Portland...this time we are flying. So glad we have great house sitters who stay at a moments notice! They love being here with the dogs, so we are blessed.

Just a reminder to take care of your family, and love them to pieces every day. They won't always be around for you to kiss and make up........

If I Am Not Crocheting......

.....I am putting together Dowdle puzzles! This one is called "Amish Quilts."

This is something to do when your brain is in overload and you can't concentrate on life. Great way to clear the cobwebs.  I finished the "Seattle" puzzle prior to this, and now have opened the "Santa Barbara" puzzle.

I have been collecting the puzzles from the cities where I have a loved one, or where I lived, or there was a significant event.  Also, I have some of his puzzles, like the one above, that are just fun puzzles.  I finished a "Hot Air Balloon" earlier this year.

This is taking my mind off my vest pattern by Doris Chan in the Crochet! magazine.  I'd load a photo of it here, except the photo loader is not working. I have tried it every which way I can...sorry. It is on the other blog, if you are interested and haven't seen it.

Turns out the pattern is way off, AND the errata provided by Doris was also not right. She told me in a link, "Please just put the project aside for now, if you can, and check back here for a link to the corrections.  There's no way I can hold your hand through it."

Guess that says it all! ;o(

Hightide

I found this in one of those linen booklet advertisements....I think it would be a perfect afghan crocheted in Vanna's Choice.  You could even find patterns to replicate almost 100% of the patterns.  This could be a feminine afghan in rosey colors, or purples, or you could man it up a tad more with darker colors!

This is going on my list of "to do's"!

Oops!

I forgot to take a photo first to show Liz I whipped up the Devil's Food Cake mix she sent to me! It was quite pretty and tastes great! No frosting needed.....

I see that I have posted several blog items, but they were saved as drafts....so I'll just get them posted and then change my settings.  Here I thought I was ahead, not behind, the game plan!

New Pattern's for Crocheted Squares

I am sure that most of you have already heard about the booklet quite a few designer's put together for the benefit of Pam Gillette,  of Knotty Generation - who is also a designer.  All, as in 100%, of the proceeds go to benefit Pam as she is struggling with cancer treatment.  I believe that she is finished with the chemo treatment now.  Check out the photo, in the link above, of this luscious afghan.

Follow this link to purchase Pam's Comfort Cables Crochet Afghan patterns.  There is an errata for those who might have purchased the booklet before 5/23/11, but if you get it now, the correction is already made.

As the site says:   


"Including patterns from crochet designers such as Drew Emborsky, Diane Moyer, Karen Ratto-Whooley, Gwen Blakley Kinsler, Tracie Barrett, Dee Stanziano, Lisa Gentry, Margaret Hubert, Tammy Hildebrand, Angela Best, Kim Kotary, Mary Beth Temple, Jill Hanratty, Kristin Omdahl, Vashti Braha, Ellen Gormley, Marty Miller, Robyn Chachula, Amy O’Neill Houck, Annie Modesitt, Bendy Carter, Doris Chan, and Mary Jane Hall."

Little Cuties in "L"

I participate in a Letter Swap.  This is where you take the persons first name and use that as the basis for the pattern you choose.  My person was Liz, so I had to find "L" patterns.

So for my first pattern, I chose something with Large as part of the title, and the second pattern had Little as part of the title.  The Large was smaller than the Little. :o)

 First, the Large - it is a Large White, or better known as a cabbage butterfly.

Then there is the Little - it's a Little Lime from the same book, 75 Birds, Butterflies and Beautiful Beasties to Knit and Crochet, by Lesley Stanfield

Then I made a Strawberry Potholder - but had to call it a Lacy Strawberry Potholder to get it in the right "L" category!  This is from an old Annie's Attic pattern leaflet #851 called Crocheted Potholders 3, by Leisure Arts.  The design is by Kay Fisher Meadors.  There is a cool grape cluster potholder in there that I want to try.  

The yarn is much brighter and prettier than it shows in these photos.

The last gift was a lovely set of patterns of Lacy Shawls to Knit.

Whew!  Made it!

Heart to Heart....

I have been into potholders a lot lately.  I found a lovely pattern to make for fun and frolic, and it turned out to be a tad more difficult to put together than I thought it should. The pattern maker is Scandinavian (Carola Wijma) and the translation into English is a little off for the normal way of our doing crochet.  However, she does have a beautiful graph that is of help.  The Ravelry download is called Grandma's Heart.

There are so many gorgeous projects you can make with this pattern, but I wanted another potholder for my DSIL that was bright and fun.

Do you remember ever seeing one of those plant holders you put on the wall that is shaped like a heart?  Rather like sconces. I think if you had a ratty container that is small this would be the perfect cover up to use, sans loop, and have it coordinate with the colors in your room.  I'd think the container would have to be something you can hang easily, then pin this around to the wall or around the container.

Carola has some little purses made and they are just darling! Perfect for a little one to carry when wearing her favorite fancy dress!