The Fisherman Wedding Afghan Tale...

An update anyway, since the story is yet to be complete...

I've actually made pretty good progress on the Fisherman Wedding Afghan although it's hard to tell as it is worked lengthwise...

I just started the middle section of the afghan...

You can just see the first rows of it emerging in the picture above.  The stitch is called "fisherman popcorn", which is basically a single crochet popcorn stitch.  The rows after the diamonds took some time as there are seven different rows of "cables" worked in there, not counting the single crochet return rows...

I have about two weeks left to complete this prior to the wedding.  I've got my fingers crossed that I'm able to meet my deadline.  

***

On a different note, we had a long holiday weekend and my hubby heads back to work tomorrow.  

It is also officially our last day of school.........

I mean...

IT IS OFFICIALLY OUR LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!  

:-)

Dear son and I completed our first year of homeschooling together, I'm proud of us both.  I wasn't sure if I had it in me.

Summer weather has really sprung up and it is starting to look pretty with the Spirea in bloom...

I'll be back with more progress on...

The Fisherman Wedding Afghan Tale...

which is...

To Be Continued...

HDP

 

Memorial Day Remembrance...

Remembering the men and women...

Past and present...

Who chose to dedicate their lives...

To freedom...

Happy Memorial Day

HDP

Another Work in Progress...

  

I have another work in progress...

and that is my weight loss.

I have great news to share...  

I'm down 14 pounds since I started on my weight loss journey!

(happy dance inserted here)

I'm really starting to see a difference and today put on some crop pants that I haven't been able to wear in a few years.  

Exciting stuff!  

My sister decided to join Weight Watchers with me, 

 so now I have a buddy to accompany me on my journey.  

Everything is coming up roses.  

:-)

HDP

My Work in Progress...

Row, by row, I'm making a little progress on the Fisherman Wedding afghan.  It is a bit slow going, but I'm enjoying working on it and I like the way it is looking so far...

I went back to the hook sizes that the pattern calls for, I had thought about using smaller hooks, but I wasn't happy with the drape of the fabric, so I went back to the larger hooks.  

I'm off to sit in my crochet chair and get hooking, I've got a wedding deadline to meet!

I hope your week is going well so far.  

HDP

This and That

Hello friends, I'm finally returning to the land of the living.  I've been sick with some sort of upper respiratory thing for a little more than a week.  I finally bit the bullet and went to the doctor, she fixed me up with some medicine, so I should be feeling better in no time.  

The above flowers are from my Peony bush in the front yard.  I love their Victorian look and their fragrance fills the house. They make me smile. 

I re-started the "fisherman-style" afghan this week.  I frogged my previous starts on this as I hate picking up something "cold".  Let me tell you, this is a labor intense project.  It's not difficult, you just have to pay attention to what you are doing and some of the stitch patterns are a bit "cumbersome".  I have a little less than a month to complete it, so this will be my sole project until I get it complete.  I already have yarn and a pattern picked out for my next project though.......never a dull crochet moment.  :-)

Dear husband got our flag out for the summer season.  Next week is Memorial day, isn't that unbelievable?

Hope you are enjoying a pleasant weekend!

HDP

A Little Gardening and Alfresco Crochet

Nothing like sitting out on the deck on a sunny afternoon, with my feet propped up, iced coffee in hand and the crochet hook and yarn close by....

I've been crocheting my little heart out on a TOP SECRET project that I hope to reveal at a later date...to be determined.  I have about 2 more weeks of crochet silence and then I'm back onto the fisherman wedding afghan.  I hope you'll bear with me while I blog about things other than crochet in the meantime...

This past Friday evening, our little family headed to our local Lowe's for some garden shopping.  I found lots of pretty flowers to plant and got right to it Saturday following the little ones soccer practice...

I planted a Knock-Out Rose bush by the mail box...

and have another rose bush my Father sent me for mother's day that will be joining it...

once we have consistently warm weather.

 I planted some Phlox in a few strategic places...

 and, several geraniums in one of the few sunny spots around the house...

And in my shady patch garden...

that my cheerful frog oversees...

I planted a Hydrangea and my favorite Impatiens...

And,

just so you know,

and aren't too worried,

Momma Robin came back to her nest in the Honeysuckle bush...

Hope you are having a great week!  

:-)

HDP

Happy Mother's Day!

"Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while, but their hearts forever."
- Unknown - 

Wishing you a happy Mother's Day!

HDP

Nature's Splendor

Yesterday was a beautiful spring day!  

We've had such a cold and gray spring with so much rain I've wondered if we were going to float away on different occasions.  But all that was forgotten with an afternoon walk in the bright sunshine...

Dear son and I found this birds nest in our honeysuckle shrub as we were playing ball.  No sign of momma robin, hope she comes back to keep her eggs warm...

The first of my irises have come up....

These bulbs came with the house and over time I've moved them around to different locations and separated them as they've grown too close together.  I think this is actually a yellow and purple that have somehow grown together, it has a kind of "muddy" look to it, but I still enjoy watching them bloom....

A flower is a flower after all...

This little critter was out in our front yard the other day...

He (or she) has been feasting on my hostas and there isn't much left of them but for a few stems.  But honestly, I don't mind (too much), I love having wildlife so close to watch...

Joy in the splendor of nature!

HDP

What is your favorite?

I was thinking this morning about crochet hooks and about my favorite brand, size, etc.  

Do you have a favorite?  

My favorite hook brand is Boye, I just like the way it rests in my hand and I like the little flat part in the middle where I can hold it.  I have two Turn of the Century Hooks that are exquisitely made and beautiful to look at, but I tend to grab one of my colorful aluminum hooks when I sit down to crochet.  

H and I are my favorite size hooks to work with, I like the look of the stitch they tend to produce with a worsted weight yarn.  

How about you?  

What's your favorite?

P.S.  Do you see that blue sky reflecting in the glass??  We haven't seen that in a while here and I'm looking forward to getting outside today!  

:-)

HDP

I've Been Planning...

 A trip...

Dear husband and I were planning on taking a vacation to New York this summer...

But, with the economy the way it is, and gasoline prices at $4.19 a gallon and rising, we decided this year wasn't the year for a 12 hour trip to the "North Country". 

We did find a satisfying compromise though...  

we decided to go to Kelleys Island.

Kelleys Island is an island in Lake Erie about 4 hours North from where we live.  I've never been there, but I'm envisioning a slow, relaxing pace, taking dear son to the beach to build a sand castle (or two), bike riding to see the glacier grooves, 

and maybe enjoying a little outdoor crochet time as the lake breeze softly moves the air.  

This will actually be the first real summer vacation my little family has been on since dear husband and I got married.  I'm looking forward to it! 

Has anyone been to Kelleys Island before?  

HDP

The Tablecloth Tale...

About a month ago, I received a package in the mail from my mother and enclosed was a family heirloom to be treasured....

My grandparent's crochet tablecloth.

The history of this beauty is still a little sketchy, but my mother and I have been able to piece together a few clues and discover that it was made by my great grandmother as a wedding gift for my grandparent who were married in 1943.  

 My grandmother kept a little diary of some of the wedding gifts she received and this lovely item is listed in her book as made by "Mom". 

Knowing my love of the craft, my mother passed this gem onto me and it now graces my dining room table.  

I'm so glad that my grandmother took care of this piece and that it has been loving used and cared for by her, then my mother, and now to me.  

The tablecloth is stained, but as an on-line friend said, that creates the history of the piece.  It's had a life and I'm hoping to continue with the tradition of this treasured family item.  

And, someday, I hope I can pass it on to my son's wife for her to treasure for special family meals.  

I wonder what the lifetime expectancy is for cotton thread?  

:-)

HDP