Baby Blanket Complete

So as promised here is the new baby blanket I have *just* finished.  I literally just sewed in all the ends.

(a little stitching while reading my Nook)

I made this for one of my best girlfriends who will be welcoming baby BOY #3 into their family.  We now officially have enough boys between the two of us for a baseball team.  (Right?  I think you need 6?)  Anywho, I hope she likes this.

She very much dislikes all of my thrifty granny-chic decorating, she much prefers things straight out of PB.  Which amazes me because I can find super similar things at the thrift.  Oh well to each his own.  All of the aforementioned dislikes brings me as to why I decided to make this blanket.  I figure that chevron patterns are popping up everywhere.  I personally LOVE a good graphic chevron!!  Plus a good ole granny zig zag really never goes out of style.   I also feel like the addition of the charcoal gray adds an ultra modern, non-baby-ish, feel to the entire blanket.

Without further ado, drumroll please...

I give you baby boy #3 chevron blanket... In all of it's glory!!

On my hook...

Well hello there... I am here and still kicking.  We are snowed in so I thought I would share what has been and is on my crochet hook as of late!!

small sweet hat for a new baby girl....

leg warmers for another friends little girl... 

cute crochet hat for my niece... 

Plus a few other hats I forgot to take pictures of... :)  I was in too much of a hurry to snap them... 

PLUS!!!!!

I have one more big thing hanging on the good ole hook right now that I can't wait to share with you!!  It is for one of my best friends and as soon as it is "given" to her and baby Max I will show pictures!!  Until then... 

Disappearing act...

Sorry I have been absent for so long I just can't seem to pull it together...

This month is our 2 year anniversary since my husband passed away.  Things are just so hard.  I think that I have unintentionally set myself up for disaster but I figure if only 1 whole month a year I am a total wreck I am doing ok.  This grieving thing is just so hard.  It is hit or miss and sometimes things come at me out of left field.... The unexpected waves of intense sadness are so hard.

For example we were at the circus with friends Saturday night and I remembered how Shane used to do some kind of ear popping thing and in the midst of ALL OF THE FUN, I broke out in tears.  Those are the times that make everything seem real and those are the hardest times for me.  It also doesn't help that these brief moments in time scare the hell out of my children. I try to hide it - but more than not I usually am not that good at it.

 Hopefully I will be back with a reflective post soon.  Until then....

African Flower Hexagon Baby Blanket Complete

PHEW!!!!!!!!!!  That was insane!!  I worked on this project for a long few months and never thought I would finish.  Thank goodness I did finish just in time, ( like just a few hours) before the baby shower this past Sunday.  Momma loved it and I liked being the only person there giving a handmade item.  Seriously I spent months on this blanket and with every stitch I prayed and wished amazing things for this sweet little girl that we haven't even met yet.  Other than time spent, with every stitch there is love, hope and happiness woven into that blanket that you can't get when you hurriedly run into a store to grab items last minute for a baby shower.  I am so proud to have actually completed my first actual gift and can't wait to get busy on the rest.

Here are a few pictures of the finished product!!!

Congrats and good luck friends on your precious baby girl's arrival in late October!!!


I find out in about an hour and a half what my best friend will be having in the early spring so here we go again!!!!  So EXCITED!!!!!!!!!

Fall is in the air...

I bought a mum the size of a shrub yesterday.  I was puttering around a local nursery here in St. Louis looking at the regular sized mums and honestly was somewhat disappointed.  As I turned and walked back to my car, I thought my eyes were deceiving me.  I saw a mum that would eventually FILL the back of my Expedition completely!  It is amazing...

Don't believe me - take a look.

And, little guy is in there purely for reference... As you can see he is none to excited to be standing barefoot in our barren wasteland of a front flower bed...

I am so excited for it to bloom into an amazing purple hue!!  Seriously I am so lame.  But this is as exciting as it gets around here...

WELCOME FALL!!!!!!!!!

All aboard the craft train to crafty town...

I have to admit - I am not one to ride the train to crafty town very often... Although I aspire to be a great crafter.... Alas, I am too lazy!!  TV, internet, kids suck me into the vortex and I look up and suddenly realize it is 4PM and I haven't gotten anything accomplished... Oh look, it is 10 til 4 right now.... Oh well, another day down the drain...

So anyway, I saw this great tutorial(ish) over at Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss blog and decided I needed to untangle my necklaces and make one of these suckers... I found this great frame, nasty picture inside at the thrift the other day for 3 buckaroos!!!  It was a great frame with lots of cool ridges and a neat border of burlap!!  Gorgeous!!  I had some Anna Maria Horner fabric laying around and wanted to look at it all the time.  I figured if I use it for this project it would be on permanent display in my bathroom, so take that!  BAM!!  Now don't get me wrong there are TONS OF THINGS I would do differently next time, but for the first go around I am pretty proud if I do say so myself!!!  

Take a little look see...

Ummmmm, so tragic...

Great ridges and burlap detail....

Voila!!!  I like it!!!  Don't you??

Fabric is fantastic... Love it too!!

Two of my favorites... Vintage necklaces and owls!!!

In it's permanent home, the master bath take one..

All loaded up!!!  YAY!!!  And still room for more!!

Love this feather necklace...

This gorgeous crystal skeleton key necklace was a gift from a great friend and designer... Who, you ask?  Why visit Allyson @ Buffalo Blue Designs or her Etsy shop .  I love, love, loveeee her and her designs!!

Oh and you wonder where I got this super cute crochet flower pin... Why my girls over @ Muggy Tuesday . They are awesome too!!  Such super sweet girls!!  You might even notice the cute maroon flower necklace in there - it is from them too!!!  YAY!!

So there it is... My first pain staking ride to craft town, it was fun and I actually love it... Thanks to   Julie @ Less Than Perfect Life of Blissfor the inspiration and showing little ole me how to make it!! Head on over there and see her great tutorial!!  

GO BUY IT NOW!!!!!!!!

All of the proceeds will benefit  Smith Magenis Syndrome research...  This is a "kid-jam" CD and it is awesome!!  My kids love it already, and so do I ... And it benefits such a great cause... Please check out Pacing The Panic Room's blog to read more about it... Such a great, fantastic, worth while cause... Enjoy!!