Keeping the puppy warm

As the weather has gotten colder, Milo has a hard time staying as warm as Chewie did. Chewie had so much thick fur, and Milo's fur is quite a lot shorter and not nearly as thick. So I decided I should probably help him out some and make him a sweater. So I found a pattern in an old pattern book I dug out of my box. It was a quick make, and I used a bulky weight yarn instead of worsted, because I had some in my stash and Kyle thought the color was the best of the yarns I had to choose from.



It stretches a little when he wears it and I need to tighten the buttonholes on the strap. A wash might help it out a little as well. But overall, I think it turned out well and will do just the trick to help keep him warmer on walks. Especially as the weather continues to get colder. We did take it on a test run today to get pictures. He didn't mind wearing it at all, but he sure didn't want to stand still for pictures!

Our first snow of the year

Friday night we got our first snow of the season. It started snowing (mostly flurries) when I was on my way to work that night. It snowed a little more and a little more all night long, and when I finally got off work I had to remove an inch of snow from my car. But the temperature was right about freezing, so the roads weren't too bad. I just avoided the freeway and took surface streets home to avoid elevated roadways. The snow was so pretty as it was coming down in my headlights at 1 a.m.

I took these pictures when I got home. The little garden near the front door, the boxwoods in front of the house (a little more protected since they are on the north side of the house), and the large maple tree out front. In that shot you can even see some of the snowflakes. It really was pretty, but was melted by 10 or 11 the next morning.

A funny thing happened on the way to...

...Wal-Mart of all places. I was driving down the road and found myself behind this truck. I literally just laughed so hard when I saw the sign on the left side of the of the picture. Look-you can earn up to 40 cents! That makes me want to just drop everything I'm doing an call that 800 number right away! I just had to grab my camera (which I try to keep in purse all the time) and take a picture of the truck (at a stop light of course).

Beating the single-crochet demon

Well, I used my sister's single-crochet beanie pattern, and finally got one figured out! I made this one from Berroco Comfort. A great acrylic and nylon blend. It feels so good. I sent this one to Evan in Iraq for his birthday. I carried the yarn down for each stripe, so the inside looks kind of funny, but it worked.

I think I'll need to make a few more to really get the hang of the single crochet. They take longer than the double crochet pattern I usually use, but they are more tightly stitched, so they should be a little warmer. I'll probably make a couple more for the boys. And maybe one for Mark.

I have some superwash wool to make a hat and scarf for Alyx. So that project will be coming up soon. She wants a hat with ear flaps and strings. I found a cute one in the Happy Hooker crochet book.

Looking for a place to rest...

It seems like I have had so much on my plate lately, and when I looked back and saw that I hadn't posted for more than 2 weeks, I realized it has been that long since I have really been able to sit down and crochet like I'd like as well. Thus, I have no new pictures to post (although I do have a single-crochet beanie in the works that I hope to have finished soon).

Last week I presented a 4-1/2 hour workshop for the Kansas Museums Association at its annual conference. I had about 20 people in attendance, from an assortment of Kansas museums, including ones as small as a single-person staff to the Kansas Cosmosphere. It was a good group of people, but it sure was stressful getting it together. The good thing is that everyone in attendance said the workshop was well worth their time and they learned a lot.

Then I've had my regular speech class at the university as well. We are getting to the end of the semester and trying to wrap up the last of the speaking assignments. The final is in 4 weeks and then a few weeks off until next semester.

And today I had jury duty. I am definitely on the short list for jury duty in Sedgwick County, because this is my 6th time to get called in 10 years. I was so happy when they dismissed us just before lunch and told us we had served our commitment. When they did the welcome orientation this morning and said there were 238 criminal cases on the dockets, I was sure I was in for a long haul.

I did, however, get the Kite Runner completely read this morning while I waited to be called for a jury pool. I started it several months ago, and set it aside. I have intended to finish it for a while and this seemed like a perfect opportunity. I even cried in the jury room while I was reading it! It is hard to imagine what life must have been like for the Afghan people who have had to live through the difficulties of the Russian occupation of the country, and the cruel rule of the Taliban coming on the heels of it. What depredation and cruelty the Afghan people have suffered under rulers like that. I don't think that those of us who have lived our lives in the U.S. can even begin to fathom what life is like there. I am eager now to get into Khaleid Hosseini's A Thousand Splendid Suns. I have heard it is even better than the Kite Runner. It has been sitting in the Pile for a while now, and I need to get to it. I think I will, however, take a break and enjoy a humorous quick read before tackling it.

I also just finished Water for Elephants. It was an interesting story and I enjoyed it. It wasn't a deep story with any level of meaning other than what is right on the surface.

So, I have read a couple of good books lately, even though I haven't had much time to crochet. A trip to the yarn shop is a necessity in the near future to get some nice wool to make Alyx a hat and scarf. She thinks life in Nebraska is too cold. So, a fun trip, a chance to get some wool and hooks into my hands and relax a little. Woo-hoo!