Chilling on the Weekend!

Yesterday I met Vicki in Dubuque and we went to a craft store and shoe store before having lunch together.  We spent a bit of time chatting over lunch and in my car after lunch.  On the drive home, I talked to Virginia (when my phone wasn’t cutting out) for over an hour.  It was a good afternoon.

Last night, Ken had supper nearly ready when I got home.  We watched the last episode of Newsroom while we ate.  He went to bed and I watched How to Train Your Dragon while crocheting.  I got the first part of a holiday gift done!

One of the things I did yesterday was to pick out yarn for gifts.  I did this before I went craft shopping with Vicki so I wouldn’t buy things I didn’t need.  In picking the yarns, I got excited to work with the yarns.  The one I worked with last night was a strand of fleece – it literally looks like someone bought fleece material and cut it into thin strips.  It was a dream to work with and I finished the project late evening.

Today while Ken is watching football, I’ll be finishing up How to Train Your Dragon (it’s a series) and working on the next aspect of a holiday gift.  This means I get to pull out another exciting yarn and work with it.  Not only do I get to enjoy working with the yarn, I get to enjoy creating a pattern from scratch.  I love taking a strand of material (whatever kind) and creating something useful and pretty.

In case people don’t know, I’m a yarn geek.  I picked up yarn for a throw for another holiday gift.  I can’t wait to get my hands on it.  I’m already envisioning how it will work up and how it will feel.  Yup – yarn geek.

It was nice to be home for this weekend.  Yes I went to Dubuque but there was no pressure in that – it was go and enjoy my daughter.  It made me wish my other daughters were close enough we could meet up and do similar things.  Unfortunately, the best I can hope for there is a long weekend somewhere between Wisconsin and Georgia.

This morning, Ken helped me get breakfast and lunch for the week made up and in the fridge.  I’m going to work hard to remember in the mornings to pack my meals rather than buying them.  I’ve got fruits and veggies for snacks.  I’ve got soup for lunch two days and he’s making a pasta dish for the other days.  I’ve got a hashbrown combo for breakfast each day.  Now I need to follow through in order to not spend the money on fast food.

I’m off to put my feet up and crochet.  I am looking forward to the down time alone in my living room.  No moving stress, no must be somewhere, nothing be me, yarn, crochet hooks, and whatever I decide to watch on tv or listen to for an audio book.  Sounds like the perfect Sunday!!!

Craft Projects Looming

I love finishing projects.  I finished off a new pattern and started a second one.  Now I have to take pictures, measurements, and work on publishing it.  I’m going to go through my basket of in progress projects and figure out what I need to finish.  I’m fairly certain I have too many going right now.

I know for sure I have two blankets, a coin purse, and a skirt all going.  I have a basket of terry cloth all prepped for making into dish towels.  Then there’s the fleece I have in a piled up in bags and baskets.

Last night I spent my night doing nothing.  This is a rarity for me as I’m usually working on something but I just couldn’t manage last night.  I was too tired.

Tonight I plan to work a fleece blanket.  I have to do the whole process.  Ken washed it for me over the weekend, along with two other projects.  Tonight I’ll take my skip cutter to the blanket to cut the little holes so I can crochet around the edge.  Once I get that done, I’m planning to do three rows.  This sounds simple but it’s a yard and half of 60″ wide fabric.  This means two sides are 60″ and the other two are around 45 – 50″ I think.  That’s a lot of stitches.

If I manage to finish that project, I want to work on an idea I had for fleece fabric.  I’m hoping to have time tonight to work on that project too but I’ll see how long the blanket takes.  The other project is a complete experiment so Vicki is likely to end up with it.

I’m hoping by this weekend I can clear out some of these projects in order to reclaim some of my living room.  Of course my family is now laughing hysterically because if I clear out the current projects, there are always more projects right behind them.  

Prepping for Vacation

Four days of work left before my vacation.  I can’t wait.  It will be good to have a break and just be at home.  I don’t have to shower or dress if I don’t want to – though the other people at home might object if I go too long without showering.

My plan – tackle the boxes of yarn for Vicki and get as much done as possible.  I’m currently stalled on the blanket I’m working on.  I’m doing a more intricate border and it is taking longer.  However, I’m hoping to finish it tonight and move on to one of the other three I have prepped.  Two of them are smaller so if I do complex, it still won’t take as long and one is a blanket but needs a simple edging.

Once I’m done with these four, I have four more to do – two for my mom and two for Vicki.  Then I also have the basket full of material which needs washing – though I think most of that will be decided on after Vicki comes home.

The semester is winding down.  The work load is easing off.  I’m saying goodbye to one student worker as she student teaches next semester.  Otherwise I’m just wishing them all happy holidays as they finish off their finals and head for home.

My desk at work is getting clearer as I finish up a number of tasks.  I’ll be cleaning up some tasks so they can be marked as complete – at least as far as I can take them for now.

It is nice to clean up and clear off before I go on vacation.  It means when I come back to work, I’ll have emails to deal with but few URGENT projects.

This year I find myself wishing my daughters could all be home.  I feel a need to have them near for family time.  I know the two in Georgia can’t make it home but I am missing them.  We will video chat on Christmas.  I’m looking forward to spending the time with them that way instead.  I think we are all going to try to go to the movies on that day.  It’s convoluted but we will all at least be doing the same thing – if not together at least at the same time.

I know part of this is my normal holiday grumpiness.  It’s just hit me a bit harder this year.  I’m coping.  My crocheting and meditating help me deal with my feelings.  Crocheting – creating really – helps to lift my spirits.  I know I’m creating things which will brighten people’s spirits.

My inner dialog has been rough the past week or so but as I work on a project, produce more, it helps me be kinder to myself.  I can’t really explain how or why but it does.  Also, I’m clearing out some of the clutter in my living room with each project.  As the room gets neater, I start to feel better.  I’ll get through the stack of projects and then I’ll put away most of the yarn except my container of projects.  We do have to prep for the grand fur babies coming home, one of which is a mischievous bugger who gets into everything.  Clear up, clean up, and prep for the visit.  That will be the weekend.

More Quiet, More Crocheting

Ken and I went to JoAnn’s yesterday.  He hates it but was very helpful and even helped pick out fabric.  He’s such a good sport, sometimes.  I got all the things I needed for the projects I have in mind.  The fabric is in the laundry being washed and dried so I can work on the projects as soon as they are done.

I came home and crocheted.  I got a number of small gifts done.  I bought fleece for a blanket for me.  Yes, I’m actually going to make something for me.  It’s shocking but true.  I picked out the yarn and went totally opposite of what I thought I would do.  I also know the pattern I want to do.  Hopefully today I’ll finish it but we will see what ends up happening.

I can’t show the rest of what I worked on because they will be gifts.  However, I got a lot done and I’ve only got two more sections to do.  I’m hoping to finish them today.

Sitting with my legs up and crocheting most of yesterday was a good thing.  My legs feel better today and the swelling has gone down.  This means the pain level is lower which of course makes me happy.

My plan for the day?  Editing for my sister, reading email this morning, and then going back to my recliner and working on crocheting.  I’m hoping the fabric I bought yesterday is done so I can work on those projects sooner rather than later.  I have a few smaller projects which I would like to get off my plate.  One of which may involve making my own patterns.  If I do, I’ll be publishing them.  It promises to be a good day of crocheting.  Hopefully I get a lot done.