If you don't have a green thumb, this is the plant for you. Heck, even if you have a green thumb this is a cute little cactus to have around. I got the pattern for Connie from here. It took me an evening to crochet and then stuff with fiberfill and lentils at the bottom for added weight. Connie enjoys hanging out with other plants and just looking cute. 
Once upon a time, a knitter bought enough wool for a coveted Hemlock Ring Blanket. The postal carrier brought her that wool one day soon after, and immediately the knitter wound up two giant yarn cakes the size of her head - she did this as to avoid weaving in more ends than necessary as she was a very lazy knitter. The right size of circular needles were purchased, and the blanket was cast on quickly after the children were tucked into bed. To the knitter's amazement, this was one of the most enjoyable knits ever! Despite working full-time, parenting two children, and travelling to another country for a week, she finished the blanket in three short weeks. When cast off, the blanket appeared to be a giant blob of wool and was unrecognizable as a blanket. It needed to be severely blocked in the most desperate way. So the blanket went into a drawer. For eight months, the knitter carefully avoided all conversation about said blanket. She laughed off other knitters who OFFERED to block the blanket. And she went about knitting hundreds of other projects so as to forget about her dear Hemlock. It nearly worked. Then one day she found herself in a dark storage cubby at work that she lovingly referred to as "The Panic Room". Rooting for soup bowls and money jars, she came upon an unopened package of giant foam mats. It was then and there that she knew what she had to do. Five o'clock could not come fast enough. As soon as she returned home, she filled up the kitchen sink with a dash of Eucalan and cold water, soaked the blobby blanket, sopped up all the water in a cushy thick towel, and stretched and pinned that blob to those foam mats. Half an hour was all it took. That made the knitter feel a tad sheepish. (Get it? Sheepish?) And the next day when she woke up, she ran down the stairs and ripped out all the pins, and she swirled and twirled until she nearly chuffed about twenty different kinds of happiness! And the blanket and knitter lived happily ever after.
My sister has her graduation ceremony this evening, so when she asked if I could watch her two youngest, I didn't hesitate to say yes 'cause graduating is pretty special, and it's not as if I get to hang with them all the time since we live an hour apart. Are you like me, and if someone lives an hour away, you think of it always as two hours away? I mean, it takes an hour to drive there and another hour to get home, so that's really two hours. Y'all think like that, right? I admit it's the pessimist in me - everything is always half empty! : ) Anyways, the kids are absorbed by the Wii, so's I might as well be invisible. I did manage to coax the two littlest girls to come upstairs and chop apples for applesauce. They chopped much faster than I could peel. I also caught many apple slices being popped into their mouths. The applesauce smells wonderful. I also chose this quiet time to spray winter boots with stainguard, so the applesauce is overtaking the potent chemical smell in the foyer. Next up, knitting. One purple 80% cashmere, 20% silk cowl . . .
Happy Friday night!
Another animal friend to add to the collection. This pattern is from here. I added the little feet, which look cute but when I sewed them on he kept falling over. To remedy that I crocheted a tail to balance things out and now he can stand on his own again.
This one is for my friend's daughter who really likes penguins. The crochet amigurumi are multiplying. I have nowhere to put them so for now they are all sitting on a table in our spare room. They look like they're talking about something. Recipes? Health care reform? Mutiny? Here's to hoping that the holidays arrive soon so I can gift these guys before they get any ideas.
Every year we argue about costumes. This year was no different. I wanted to make a jellyfish costume to showcase my creative skills, and the littlest insisted that a fish was in no way scary. Nothing but scary would do for this one. So I relented, and as is the case each time I relent, it is a success. Man, I hate to admit that. 
