Charlie's Blanket

I long ago decided that I didn't like making Polka dot blankets. I made one for Toby and then made one for Iris, but I am definitely done with the random placement of polka dots in crochet. I didn't feel like making one for Charlie with polka dots in a stripe, but I may as he gets older. Ben wanted Charlie's blanket to be square and I wanted it to be holy so that he could use it immediately without me fretting over suffocation. So I thought about making one giant granny square. I discovered that many people had done this before me so felt confident in the pattern I found. I, however, have never made a granny square before. The instructions were nonsensical. I tried several times, before giving up and finding a new pattern that made more sense. That still didn't work, so I went to a third pattern. By this point I had unpicked and redone the center so many times I could have made the entire blanket. I knew what they looked like and I knew what the instructions were ALL saying to do, the two did not match. So I took out my simple crochet book, which contained a pattern for a traditional granny square blanket. I looked at the picture, and with my new experience of the style of stitch, winged it

 . It's beautiful. I love it. It's so easy and quick and I can't put it down.

There's a lot more purple than I thought which worries me, but I think Charlie is going to love it. I think it's easily my favourite blanket now, to make and look at. It's just perfect for my little boy.

Time to craft

A few weeks ago, at a baby shower, a friend mentioned that her daughter was going to be a monkey with a pink tutu for Halloween. Now while I in no way celebrate or endorse this particular holiday, I knew just the thing that was needed.

Finding time to craft is a hard thing at the moment. Between a toddler, a baby brewing and visiting family there is barely enough time to stay on top of the everyday. Virtually every room in our house is in disarray and likely to remain that way for some time.

But you need that touch of sanity every so often, so I made some time.

This is another design from Amigurumi World: Seriously Cute Crochet by Ana Paula Rimoli. I love this book, it's what introduced me to Amigurumi and the patterns are both easy to follow and produce lovely results.

I love Ana's patterns, and this time I even remembered to take our different tensions into account. When I do one of her heads I have to remove a row or I get an oval head instead of round. You should see the pink elephant I made, it's interesting.

 

 Anyway, this is the first one I've completed in quite some time so I am very happy. It makes me more adventurous and I hope to have more Turkeys made by Thanksgiving.

Simply ten good things

I enjoy reading Amanda Blake Soule's blog. www.soulemama.com She's often a little (a LOT) more hippyish than I tend to be, but her desire for simplicity, usefulness and love of her family keep me coming back. Today she prompts me to think of simply ten good things. Here they are:

Charlie growing in my belly, waking up as I fall asleep and nudging me.

Toby's kisses in the morning, mmmmmmmwah!

Pot Roast in the slow cooker on a cold day.

Good friends to help see me through unexpected news.

A good book to read on my lunch break.

Chickens that misbehave but give us two fresh eggs a day.

The beginnings of a new crocheted baby blanket.

The prospect of a new job for Husby and all the good it will do

B12 supplements!

Cool crisp mornings.

Super Toby

At Toby's second birthday party in September, we saved the present from Grandma and Pepere till last. We knew what it was. When you have a very handy Grandma and have recently started jumping up and yelling "SUPER TOBY" before running around the room, there really is only one thing she has to do for your birthday. 

I present to you SUPER TOBY... 

The Cape is sewn to the right side of the t-shirt and attached to the other with velcro. She called and had me measure his head in his sleep to make sure it fit his head!

We all have a lot of fun with Super Toby!