Some Recent FO's

I have had a couple of these things *almost* done, FOREVER.... The love bug: Only needed wings, and sewing on the legs. The stripey bear was just a recent project I finished. These are all for the April CAL for UCDavis at CFAC... The 'Beary Blankie' has also been a WIP forever. I had the blanket part of it done. Dug out the yarn and pattern (an old Crochet World issue) and finished it...

This is a 'Flower of the Month' pin I did recently. From the November '08 issue of 'Crochet!'. I had a little bit of gold thread w/ shiny thread going through it:

I probably have enough to do one more. Then I remembered all the blue yarn I bought at the Goodwill a long time ago (I used up all the rest on BICOs, amazingly...) :

Now I will have a use for a lot of it! :P I just need to get more silver and gold buttons. These two were on the bottom of my sewing basket. I have about three to five more I could use, too. Don't you love being able to use *nothing* and make *something*? :P I already gave the blue one to someone in our congregation who gave me a 'Hawaii Flowers' Calendar. I don't know if she likes it or not, yet. (I wrapped it up and gave it to her... I haven't seen her since.) The gold one I am sending to my 'elder' on Pine Ridge. She said she likes to wear jewelry. I have some white thread w/ a silvery thread through it, some red, and some silver that I could use to make more. I am thinking about looking for other flower patterns online I could use for these...

Well that is about it. I am also testing something for someone but that isn't done yet. :-D I hope you are having a good day wherever you are. Til next time~~~ :)

Smoothies

Yum... I have been craving fruit smoothies for a long time now. Especially since I saw the tropical fruit shake Mimi made! Mine isn't as colorful (or probably as tasteful, but...) I didn't really want to make my own. But I couldn't find any smoothie place around here. And I know they are probably super expensive, anyway. When we went grocery shopping, I looked at Odowalla (sp?) smoothies, for a small 8 or maybe 12 oz. bottle it was $2.98!!! At WalMart! We did buy a 64 oz. jug of V8 Fruit smoothie, strawberry banana. Probably also a ridiculous price, but not as bad as the Odowalla one. When we got home, I poured a glass. Looked at the back of the jug, '10% Fruit Juice'!! Ugh... So, I made my own. I remember when I was pregnant with our second son, I got a pregnancy magzine (my Mom also bought me a couple, too). In one of them was a recipe for a banana smoothie. I liked it. (My husband says it sounds disgusting...) I said 'It's not supposed to taste like a shake. It's fruit.' This is how I made the one above: 1 banana (I would have used a frozen one, but I didn't have one in the freezer), 1 cup milk (I used light soymilk), 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1 Tbsp sugar (probably shouldn't have added that, but... oh well. :P) And, about three ice cubes. You could add more. Really ice cold things hurt my teeth since I had all that work done recently. :( It was pretty good. And I wasn't hungry until dinner time. (I didn't eat any lunch, just the smoothie.) We also make what tastes (to me) like an Orange Julius. Probably not *just* like, but...we make a lot of this one: 16 oz. container of orange juice concentrate, 1 cup milk, 1 tsp. vanilla, a bunch of ice cubes, and 2 Tbsp (I think, might want to just use one to start with) sugar. Blend... :) Here is a recipe for a banana smoothie that sounds a little more flavorful than the one I made today. There's lots of other smoothie recipes there, too.(Not all are just fruit, though...) Well that is all for now. Til next time~~ :)

An Old Picture of My First Two Bears...

This is all I have left of both of them, now. Our 12 year old kept his for a long time. But I didn't know what happened to the oldest sons' bear. I wanted to find it to copy it, cuz it was the coolest of the two, IMO... And I wanted to try and re-make one like someday... :P I found the picture one day (then lost it again, and again, and again....) Now it is archived in my blog!! :P

See how big our youngest guy was?! He was only a couple of days old here (I know, cuz see how yellow he looks? He had jaundice. We took him in I think at four days old and they told us that...) This is why I had all of them C-section... (sigh..) :/ He's laying on Daddy's lap. (If you couldn't tell by the hairy legs LOL!!) ;P

Shrugs, Boleros, and Sweaters, Oh My...

I have been slowly trying to make more wearables for myself. I think the biggest thing(s) is(are): I am afraid I will fail, it will not come out the wrong size, look stupid on me, I won't feel comfortable wearing it... (sigh) Last night I spent probably an hour and a half looking through every crocheted sweater on Ravelry. I found a couple cute patterns I printed out: Ashlar Crochet Cardigan and Crochet Tie Top Front Then today I found another cute one I liked at Crochetville, I believe: Chevron Lace Cardigan Well I don't have enough money (no money at all, actually) to go buy the yarn to do any of these. So I tried to think what I had. Then I remembered five skeins of Lion Brand Microspun I bought (when we lived in Colorado, still~ that's how long I've had it). I had been going through all my magazines and printed patterns, and finally decided on the Short Sleeved Bolero pattern I have also had forever but never made... I am getting brave (?) enough and wanting enough to make things for myself so it is really fun, now. Not that it wasn't fun making all the above shrugs and boleros! I think I was just apprenhensive about the whole thing...

This is one I bought at Target a few years ago. (It is a maternity shrug, too~ Can you believe it? Maybe for someone who is teeny tiny when they are pregnant~~ I wasn't!!) I got it to try and copy another one from. But upon closer look when I got home, I noticed it is knitted, not crocheted. (I am not far enough along/experienced enough to do that with knitting!)

Here is my bolero so far!!:

I am excited. While I was crocheting I was thinking of other sweaters I wanted to do/colors I should do them in. I found one I really liked at Crochetville that I am totally going to hunt down the book so I can make one: Wraparound Sweater, from Readers Digest Big Book of Weekend Crochet. I found it on Amazon. I am going to order it soon. :P Then I remembered more yarn I had bought to make a sweater from a book I also bought with the yarn (to make the sweater in the book with). So I will have enough to keep me busy for a while. If only I could just finish my Central Park Hoodie. (I might finish it by the time I would wear it again, next fall....) I also have two balls (1000 yards each) of white size 10 crochet cotton I could make a shrug or bolero with. :P

Well have a Great Monday everyone. Going to go crochet some more!

I'm a Bag Lady!!!!! :0 !!!

I still don't believe it. Yesterday I was sitting in my bedroom crocheting. My husband came in there (I could tell he had something behind his back.) I said 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Is there a Mom w/a Motif in here?' My mouth dropped open. 'That's me!' I got up and he handed me this box. I looked at the label. As soon as I saw who it was from, I though (gasp!!) 'Is it what I think it is?!!' I opened it up and as soon as I saw the colors, I knew what it was. I was so excited. It's the April 2009 Crochetville Tote Bag from Tampa Doll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I almost started crying. It is so beautiful. The picture does not do it justice at all. The little rose on top is also a closure. A loop goes around it, to close the top. Inside, there is a tag that says 'Made Especially For You by Mary Jo'. :-D I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this bag! I have been on Cloud Nine ever since I got it. THANK YOU MARY JO!!!!!

Here is a card I recently finished. It isn't the greatest, but... it's something I enjoy (sometimes) doing. I got most of it done til my six year old realized I was in my room, making cards (he likes to make cards, too..... sigh...) I don't mind doing it with him, sometimes; but sometimes I just want to make my own cards (which I never finish, if I am helping him...). He made his own version. (I need to find it and take a picture.) I used the instructions for the Pink Dragonfly Tag. But made it into a card, and added the 'Friend' stamp to use up the space on the side... I didn't have a dauber so I used a pencil eraser (?)... I think it turned out all right. Only had to buy the butterfly 'bling' and pencils (for the eraser).

This is what I was crocheting when my husband brought in the box yesterday. :P I had another pink one I had made (years and years ago), that I can't believe I still have. I thought I gave it away, but I found it yesterday (while looking for my butterfly bookmark!). :p I had always thought, 'I am going to sit down and figure it out and make another one, someday' (I don't have the magazine it was in). Well yesterday was that day. I also added a sc border around the edges...

I was looking for my butterfly bookmark to see the wire on it. This was a new venture for me. I bought some floral wire, and used some beads I already had from making stitch markers. I know the picture is really bad (can't take pictures of small things/close-up) :( but maybe you can *kind* of see the beads. I am thinking I will send this either to my Mom or my friend, next time I write her (with that card above, which I made with her in mind...) Well I guess I decided who I was sending it to, didn't I?... I have more variegated thread though and I got the pattern(s) out for the butterfly and the bookmark, to make more...

Incidentally, I found the butterfly bookmark. It was inside my book I started reading (again): Drowning Ruth. When I was in Tennessee last summer, my sister in law said 'I have your book.' (I thought it was my 'Gap Creek' book I gave her, which is one of my favorite books...) I totally forgot I gave her this one. :P I started reading it from the beginning again, last night.... Well that is all for now. Exciting weekend for me, so far! I hope you are having a great weekend where you are. :)

More Socks

I finished these today, for our six year old. I was so happy to finish them. I got completely burned out from making socks and I could not work on these for a while. I got some of my motivation back (somehow) and picked them back up and once I started working on them it was all right... I already posted this, but they were done in 'Wildfoote' in the 'Master Grey' colourway.

And, they fit him perfectly! (Ignore my husbands' dirty work clothes on the floor in the background :P) Oh and I guess my pajamas and hoodie!! (Sorry. The laundry basket was in the laundry room and I hadn't brought it back into the bedroom yet...)

He said 'They fit my feet tight, like I like them'. ;P

And here is another pair of burgundy ones that were just like the ones I made for myself. But in a size 8. I sent them out as an RAOK for Crochetville. These were done in the beginning of March. I know she got them a while ago, I am just now getting around to showing them here.

I don't know if I will be knitting any more socks for a while. I did get kind of burnt out. And, the weather (here) is warming up a lot; so I know we won't be needing socks right now! Maybe I will start up again later with them....

I haven't been working on anything else lately but the dishcloths. I will be doing the Gettin' Scrappy CAL soon, though. Well have a great weekend everyone!

French Breakfast Puffs (muffins)

Yummy!! I made these tonight. I was in the mood to make muffins again. I didn't have any butter though, to make the poundcake muffins I had in mind. Then I thought of these I used to make when were poor and had NO money at all. We always had cinnamon and sugar, though. And butter... Anyway they are the yummiest. They taste like a cinnamon sugar donut. (Best eaten right out of the oven.) Well after I got the recipe out, I realized these use butter, too. (But I went to the store and got some.) I used a recipe in an old cookbook I have, but it is IDENTICAL to this one. And probably a million calories each. UGH. Well I am glad I took a picture of them, because they are already gone. They didn't even last one day. I am going to have to start hording food. :P Hiding it in the freezer, or something. I can't keep up.

I got ten new dishcloth patterns at the digknitty designs site. Today was the last day for the 'Buy Five, Get Five' sale. So I went and got some, I couldn't pass it up. I got two different snowman ones, a snowflakes one, blueberry muffin (which got me in the mood to make muffins, by the way :P), gingerbread love, cardinal, Amish Horse & buggy (because I am obssessed with Amish people, LOL~ not really, but I used to be), Gone Fishin' one (I had my Dad in mind for this one, although I don't think he does the dishes much any more~~ although he might be, now that he is retired....), and a sunflower one. I am trying *desperately* hard to finish the second sock I started though. I am past the gusset and all the decreases, now I am on straight knitting for the foot part. I only have about an inch and a half left of that; then the toe decreases. I couldn't even pick that sock up for about two weeks, I think. I must have gotten some motivation (somehow) to finish it, today. The only thing I have been in the mood to do lately is dishcloths.

In other non-yarn-related-news, my tree has leaves budding!! I am so happy! It looked so dead when we first moved in here. A couple of the other trees don't look so hot (maybe they will bud & bloom later?), I haven't looked at the trees in the back yard yet... But this one is my favorite. I don't know why. I just got attached to it. Weird, I know. I guess it did have leaves on it, but only on the one side. Well the leaves are budding all over. So that's good. Well that is all for now. Two posts in one day. Wow. And we don't have cable today. (Cancelled the company we had; to go with a new *hopefully* better one...) The kids have been going through their movies, and must be loving it; because they are on their second one today. (Shrek, and now Flushed Away.) :P Oh, to be a kid again... ;)

Catching Up...

I can hardly get on the computer anymore, between the kids and the hubby. Sheesh. Going to have to start scheduling a time when I can get on here. I finished a dishcloth last night. "Baked With Love" dishcloth. Seems to be the only thing I want to do anymore. :( I was going to start a 'Prime Rib' one on a dishcloth knitalong group I am in on Ravelry. But I could not get it. I had a horrible headache last night. Tylenol didn't even do anything for it. (My husband was home sick yesterday-- I felt like I was sick, too.) So far it hasn't come back. But it felt like it was trying to a few minutes ago. (I told it to go away. :P) Just jokin'....

Lookie what I got in the mail the other day!! I am doing a swap with someone on Crochetville. She sent me three bags of these beads! :0 I am going to be in stitch marker heaven. So far the only colors I have is pink, and green. So I will have to try and look for lavender, blue, and white now to go with these. Yay!! This is the second set of beads someone has sent me. And look at the pretty flower drawing she did. I love that.

I have also finished up the Spring Mystery CAL. I did one in WW and one in thread. The one in WW didn't look very good as a hat on me. It was a little tight. So, for the sake of posting a picture of it in the CAL, I put it on one of my plant pots. (I was really thinking it would look good w/ a clay flowerpot & flowers... but I don't have one.)

I still don't know what it is going to *be*.... Maybe I will get a pot of flowers next time I go to the store and put it out on my patio.

Here is the thread one. I think this would be good as a candle holder, or a little basket to put potpourri in. I still haven't stiffened it. I don't have any of the Stiff Stuff. I wonder if Elmers glue would work.... Probably not.

Well that's all for now. Our oldest son is home from his trip to my brother's/Grandma's (My Mom's). I am glad he is home now. We already went to the Oral Surgeon. (ugh....) He has to have all four of his wisdom teeth out. That will be about $400. Even w/ insurance. (Grrrr!!) Then he has to take driver's ed. That will be another $200. There goes all my new clothes I wanted to get. (Ha.)

I joined a swap at Crochetville. I haven't been in a swap there (except for the little, private swap I just did with someone) in a long time. It is the 'Scrap Yarn Swap and CAL'. It is a swap and a CAL. It sounds fun. I decided I would work on the yo-yo purse I got started with a while ago. I have about half the yo-yos I need to finish it. I have only been using scrap balls of yarn to do it with, so that's why it is taking forever. I got a skein of brown to do in between the yo-yos. It's going to be brown and green(s). I want to do a brown and pink one, too. I really like jonyponytails yo-yo purse and have wanted to do one like it for a long time... Well that's all for now. Have a Great Day Everyone!

Spring Mystery CAL

It is also called 'Mother's Day CAL'. I joined it at Crochetville. I love doing a 'mystery CAL'. That was one of the reasons I joined a dishcloth knitalong group. It was a 'mystery' almost til the end. That group is closing at the end of this month. :( Anyway~~ This is the first one I did, in WW cotton w/a G hook. Later on I was bored and so I did one in thread, too:

Here is Day 2. They are starting to look like bowls (or maybe eggs?):

Someone else (who is incidentally doing the same color thread as mine) posted a picture of her progress, and hers is doing the same thing. So it is probably what it is supposed to look like. Actually, everyones' does. Maybe it is a basket? So far the 'mystery' items are corrugated cardboard and ribbon and flowers. Hmmm.... The suspense!! I know I'm a big dork, but I think it's so much fun. :-D Oh, I ran out of the ecru WW (on the very last stitch,

Fridgies

I have been making a lot of them lately for some reason. (Fast, cute...) :) The rainbow is actually a 'pin', from the June '08 issue of Crochet World. I thought it would be cute as a magnet. Lots of glueing. But still fun. Then later that same night I (stayed up late) made 'Jose Jalapeno' for our youngest son. (Sigh....) Long story. If you have ever watched Jeff Dunham, you know who Jose Jalapeno is. I don't like the kids watching him, but we saw a video w/ him and our youngest son thought 'on a stick' was the funniest thing ever. So I made him Jose Jalapeno... I used the Hot Pepper Fridgie pattern. Then started looking through all the other patterns at the 'Fun Fridgies CAL' (which I have been in for a while now). Liked the Notepad Basket Fridgie. Made one. Then made another one, and another one... That pattern is SO cute, and so much fun! I am still making them. :) Here are the first three I made one night:

I wanted to try and use other things besides the roses, since I only had four. I went to WalMart to see if they had any. Nope. Well I didn't feel like driving for an hour to *try* and see if other WalMarts, or Michaels, had any.... So I finally thought 'Oh yeah, what about those little wooden thingys I got at JoAnns, a long time ago...' I made the apple to one to put on my own fridge. :P Well the only *papers* you can put in them is a 2x2 post-it cube, and that is a tight fit. So I tried chaining 18 to make a little bigger one. (You would have 30 dc if you did it this way). And added one more row to the pattern. They aren't too much bigger, but would still fit a bigger sized post-it pad or paper in:

And are still cute. I put one of the original ones I made next to them so you can see how much difference there is. I already have two ready to go for RAOKs. Need to go get some more yarn to make one certain color of one. Hopefully I can find some more ribbon roses to put on, in different colors.

A Dishcloth and a Bunny

:P Well I couldn't think of a good title for this post... This is a guitar dishcloth I started and finished yesterday. Started before dinner, finished after dinner... I found it on ravelry by typing 'guitar dishcloth' in the search engine thingy... I found a whole page of about 530 or so patterns. (This was on there, but you will have to go through them all to find it... ): Digknitty Designs
It takes a while to load fyi ;) I think I will never run out of dishcloth patterns to try. :-D

Our youngest son saw a baby bunny in our front yard the other night. He was looking out the blinds in the living room and said 'A bunny!' So we all ran to look. :P It was so cute!!

You can't see it very good, so I zoomed in:

It was eating what little patches of grass we have. Then, last night I saw a big one in the front yard. I don't know if it was the mama or what. I didn't see the baby at all. Once in a while when we come home if it is just getting dark out, we will see a rabbit by our garage. So they must have a den (? what do rabbits call their houses?) around our house somewhere. It was neat just watching them.

I started the second sock (again) the other night, too. I am past the heel flap and all that; and I'm on the 'gusset'. It's going good so far. After that I will have to start the Earl Grey socks.

Meet "Scribbles"

I just finished this little guy up last night. I finished his I-cord neck tie this morning. :-D I wasn't sure how he would turn out. (I was using two strands of WW held together, and it seemed like it was going to be too stiff. Plus it didn't look like a bear, LOL!) But once I got it sewn up; and the arms, ears and eyes on, it looked like a bear~ and I fell in love with him!! But I had to give him to my six year old, who I was making him for. :( (His left leg isn't wonky, it must have got squished under him, when I put him on the couch to take his picture..) I have crocheted lots of bears, but this is my very first knitted bear. I used a pattern from an old Family Circle Easy Knitting magazine I have. (Fall '98). It was pretty vague~ but I kind of like those kind of patterns. We went to a site with teddy bear names , cuz he couldn't think of a good name. So I read off all the names to him; and he picked Scribbles, or Cinnamon. I liked Scribbles better, for him. Cinnamon not so much. Maybe if he was a brown bear. :P I like knitting bears, I think I foresee lots more knitted bears in the future-- now that I know how easy they are. (Maybe with only one strand, it will be even more easy next time...) :D

Another Dishcloth and Rectangle Man

"Super Rectangle Man", that is. :P The 12 year old son wanted one. (I knew he did!!) :P He picked out the colors. Then I got to the legs and said 'What color do you want the legs?' He picked out yellow. So I said 'It's Super Rectangle Man'. :P Fortunately, I didn't have any red fun fur!

I also finished this dishcloth yesterday. Got two projects done (that I am not supposed to be working on anyway ;P). I saw one that CroJulee did and looked up the pattern on cpc. I made it for our oldest son. He plays guitar and piano, and it's his job to do the dishes after dinner. :P I told him (jokingly at the time, but it really happened..) that I was knitting him dishcloths for when he gets back (he is gone til the end of March). He said 'I don't like washing dishes with those. The grease sticks to them and you go to wash the pan and it sticks back on the pan and gets all over' Hmmm.... (That never happens to me.) So, I don't know if he will like it or not. But, I am making him a second one, this guitar one. (If you click on 'available for download', it takes you to her whole page of dishcloth patterns for sale~ :0!!! There is enough patterns there to keep you busy knitting dishcloths for the rest of your life!!) If he doesn't like them, he can use them for coasters or save them for when he gets his own house or apartment... (Guess I made it to go in *my* kitche, though, didn't I?....) Who knows. He does like anything I make him, though; so we'll see. Now to just start and finish the Earl Grey socks I wanted to make him, too. (Got to finish the second sock for the six year old, first, though.... sigh....)

I am thinking about doing another one of these, in yellow, for my Grandma. She plays piano. And likes knitted dishcloths (she had one in her dish drainer one time, that she bought at a rummage sale and said she likes them...) I am almost 99.9% positive I saw a 'piano keys' dishcloth on Lisa's site, too. Maybe I will buy that one next. :P

Recent Fo's... (Nothing I Am Supposed To Be Working On..

I made these comfortghan squares up for Dawn at Crochetville who just lost her grandmother suddenly. So very sad.

This is a dishcloth I knitted on a dishcloth weekly knitalong group on Ravelry. It is called 'Yarn Over Cable Cloth'. I didn't really want to do it but once I started knitting it, it grew on me. Now, I really like it and think Imight just re-do my whole kitchen based on this dishcloth! I love this colourway. It is 'Country Side Ombre'. Nothing in my house is lavender and green, though. So I guess I will have to give it away. :P

I like how the back side just looks like ribbing. So you could use either side and it will still look okay. ;)

And, more recently (except the fish, which was pre-dishcloth) I have been knitting catnip mice to send to someone. I used to love making these, to give to anyone I knew who had a cat. I used to try and make them in wool, only. Now, I don't care I will use acrylic. (I don't think cats care, either... so why waste my wool? :P)

Speaking of wool.... I haven't done any more on the second sock for our six year old. (Sigh...) I guess I really got disgusted. I should force myself to finish it, though. Before his feet grow another inch and they won't even fit him! :0

Oh, you can get the catnip mouse pattern here. I made the light blue one with this pattern, since it is less brainwork (for me, anyway :P). I think it looks almost exactly the same, too. The bumpy part is just slightly less bumpy. ;)

Rudy the Rectangle and a Corner Granny

(Dishcloth, that is...) This is Rudy. The Rectangle. I got a free tear off sheet at Michaels this weekend for him. And, the six year old wanted one, of course!! "But with fur on the outside, and white arms & legs"... Which is fine, but I really do not like working with fun fur. It makes me SO irritable!! But, I survived.... :P You can find the free pattern online, too at Michaels dot com: Rudy the Rectangle He is pretty cute.

And here is the dishcloth I made yesterday. From my new dishcloth book(let?): Kitchen Kolors. If you have the book "200 Crochet Blocks" by Jan Eaton, square #7 is very similar to this. I'm sure there *has* to be a free online square pattern out there somewhere, too. But I haven't found it yet and don't have time to look for one right now. (Sorry.)

I already used it to wash dishes with. I like it. :) Well that's all for now I hope everyone is having a good Monday.

I Strayed From My Socks...

I did try to work on them yesterday. But I was knitting along, and noticed there wasn't two purl stitches where there should have been. Only one. Huh? I noticed the knit stitch right next to the purl was really loose, too. Grrrr... Looked inside to see if maybe I could just fix it without having to go back a few rows... I could not figure it out. So I ripped two inches of ribbing out and am back to only one sock. Sigh... I was too irritated to even mess with it yesterday. So I worked on some hotpads from my magic ball I have been saving up. (Above picture)

This is what the inside looks like. All the ends are inside. And here is the front of the first one I did:

The back:

Then I made a second one, which I think turned out even cooler! I like the way the colors came out in this one. Pretty cool how just tying yarn together can come out the way it did....


The back and front of the second one (the front is more blue):

Okay, I don't know what I was trying to do with these pictures ... I used the Mielke's Farm 'Double-Thick Diagonally Crocheted Potholder' pattern. It is on crochet pattern central, under potholders/hotpads; but the link hasn't worked for me for quite some time. Don't know if it is the site or what.. It's my favorite hotpad (potholder) to crochet. I keep forgetting how many to chain in the beginning. For these I chained 36. I think I would chain 46 next time. These are pretty good size but I like 'em a little bit bigger....

When Life Hands You Lemons... Make Lemon Curd!

And scones to go along with it... Yum! I made these this morning. (You would need approximately five lemons to actually make this or 1 cup lemon juice....) Here is a recipe for lemon curd that is *somewhat* similar to the one I used. Except you would use 1 cup lemon juice and sugar, and only 3 Tbsp of butter. And, I cut that in half. Are you totally confused now? :P The scones are raisin scones *reminiscent of Ireland*. Here is one raisin scone recipe. I can't remember the one I did (I did the lemon curd last, so it is still fresh in my mind... but not for long... :P) Here is another one. This one sounds kinda like the one I used, but I also sprinkled sugar on top of them after brushing w/ the egg white.

I have been very, very good with my projects lately. Only working on one at a time, until it is finished. I actually feel better doing it like that. Otherwise I get even more *ADD* feeling (not that I am, but...) if I get a bunch going at the same time. This is a pair of socks for our six year old. While I was doing the socks/slippers CAL/KAL last month, he really wanted a pair. I did make him a crocheted pair of socks. But I had been wanting to knit him a pair too. Actually I want to knit them all a pair. I found a 'recipe' for his size socks in the book 'Folk Socks' by Nancy Bush. It's very similar to the one I have been using. I was surprised to find a regular pair of socks in this book. The label is missing from the yarn, but I know from a previous post that it is 'Wildfoote' in the 'Master Grey' colorway. I got it at the LYS in Traverse City, MI when we still lived there. (In Michigan, not Traverse City~~ don't I wish?) Last night I was finishing up sewing in the loose ends on the first sock; and I said, 'I have a surprise for you Eon'. 'What?' I showed him the sock. I said, 'Did you know I was making this for you?' (no) He kind of smiled. I said, 'Try it on'; so he did. He said, 'It feels like a real sock. It's not all bumpy on the bottom. Like this sock.' (The other sock he had on.) Then later on, he said; 'Will the other sock be done by bedtime?' LOL!! (It was bedtime right then.) I got it started, though; as you can see...

I have the yarn and pattern planned for the 16 (almost 17!!! :0) year old's socks. I was looking through Ravelry one day, to see if I could find any ideas. And I stumbled across some Earl Grey Socks. (That will take you to the actual pattern, not the Ravelry site.) I thought those would be perfect! He loves Earl Grey tea, and would like those socks too. Easy peasy. I still have to think of something for the 12 year old, though. Sigh... If I know him he would probably like something plain, all one color. We'll see...

The Ark Is Finished!

Ha ha! It took me more than forty days and forty nights, but... ;P It's done! I may still sew on the turtle's legs & tail; because that will bug me... But. It's done. I started it on December 23rd, 2008. Finished it on March 2, 2009. So a little over two months. Two and a half, approximately... Not too bad for me~ the person who doesn't finish things. Anyway~~ I wanted to make all the ark and animals in more 'realistic' colors. The ones they had in the pattern were ridiculous. A purple elephant, a pink giraffe. A pink turtle.... I guess maybe if you were going to make it for a girl, you could do those colors. I also would have liked to make the ocean and sky normal colors. Kinda hard cuz they'd both be blue... Oh well. I am so happy it is done. It measures 36" x 42", I believe. Good size for even when he is a toddler.

Jodi's Merry Go Round

I haven't made a doily in a long time. This used to be one of my favorite doilies to make. Course, I only had about three doily patterns.... (Three of my aunts crochet and they would give me copies of patterns of doilies they made that I liked...) It's called (as the title states) Jodi's Merry Go Round. I think the last time I made this was for a secret pal swap in April of '07. In red. I really like it in colors; even more so.