Frogger

The FlyLady has been teaching me to de-clutter my house, and my life. I've been trying to apply some of her basic principles to my projects as well. I'm tired of having the 'clutter' of so many UFOs, so I've begun to tackle them. Sounds good, right? I completed a baby afghan for my brand new niece, but can't post pictures yet, because I haven't given it to them yet. :)

As soon as I completed the afghan, I tackled a pattern that I'm helping proof for Foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains - I got to round two of the hotpad, and got stuck. What?! I honestly think I've lost my mind. She's written a great pattern, and I can't wait to finish it - it's super cute! Anyway, that became another UFO.

I then grabbed the doily I began in January. I just knew I could finish it in one day - WRONG! I found my place in the pattern, and got to work. A round and a half later, I ripped it all out. When I joined Ravelry, I found out that a project that you rip out is considered "frogged." Why? you may ask. When you rip-it, rip-it, it sounds quite a bit like a frog's ribbit. :) So, the doily has been frogged, and I restarted it today. My stitches are to loose though, and I need to figure out how to tighten them up, so my doily is pretty, and not scraggly looking. I got frustrated with that, and moved to the next project.

I picked up my braided looking afghan, determined to work on it a little each day until it is completed. Well, after I thought about it, I frogged that one too. It's about 2 feet too long, and I have been mentally blocking it for about 2 years now, hoping it will just vanish. It hasn't disappeared, and I laid it out on our bed today, and determined that I'd be much happier with it if it were the correct size. So, out the yarn comes, and I'll start over.

I'm really bummed that I'm not finishing much these days, but I did vow to not start another project until I finished the one for the new baby, and I did keep that promise to myself. Until things start looking up, just call me Frogger.

Just to Share

I was telling my aunt C about this scrapbook page, and thought I'd share it with you.

It's an interesting page, and is from my trip to Spain. It is a tri-fold page, and the first picture shows the page closed. The second shows it open. Hope this makes sense!

Cropping the Aquarium

Here are my most recent pages from my trip to the aquarium:

I finished the following pages this morning:

I cut these letters on my Cricut. It took me a couple tries to get them right, but I'm learning.

I've also been working on an afghan for my new niece.

Progress Report

Here is the previously promised picture of my newly 'organized' craft area. Since these photos were taken, there has been even more progress, which makes me happy. I've completed 3 more pages in my aquarium album. This progress is making me want to crop even more. The little cart in the lower right corner is the one I referred to in my last post.

Below are the pages I completed last weekend. I'll post the other 3 once I actually take the picture. I'm happy with how this album is coming together. I don't have really cute ideas for the pages, and I waste way too much time on the internet, so I don't need to waste more looking for ideas. Just being honest.

Back at it

I've been working on organizing my craft area/room...again. I've attempted this several times before, but haven't ever found a 'system' that has worked for me. I decided I'd try again this weekend. Partially due to the FlyLady, and partially because it's cluttered nature was hindering any attempt of progress. Each day I don't crop means I'm one more day behind. However, when I get things done, I can begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

So, I found a craft cart online, and then made a trip to Target to pick it up. I really haven't wanted to spend any more money on the organization, but figured out that my 'free' way of organizing wasn't working at all. I was very excited to get started with the organization. So much so that I've labeled each drawer, and certain 'topics' are ready to crop - paper and all! How exciting for me! The drawers hold 12x12 paper perfectly. I'll post a pic soon, to show you want I'm talking about, because I know this is about as clear as mud.

Since organizing, I've been able to find my table top once again, which has inspired me to get moving! I've completed two pages since Saturday. If you know anything about my cropping, this is a record pace! The pages aren't anything fancy at all, but you know what? They're done, and that's what matters to me at this point.

My cropping style has changed drastically since making my first scrapbook, and I actually prefer the old better. It's more elaborate, while at this point I feel like I'm just slapping pictures on colored paper. Oh wait, maybe it feels that way, because that's what I'm actually doing! I'm ashamed to admit that though. Maybe I can tap into the inner craftiness some day...but for now, a little progress is better than none at all.

My latest projects

Just a quick update so you can see what I've been up to...

Baby E with her Santa hat on. I made it big enough to fit over the band she's now wearing for the flat spot on her head. I hope that this will still fit next year - and it very well may, since she won't be wearing the band anymore.

Baby E's dress

My stocking for next year. E's and YammaDaddy's will come later...

The pieces to E's Teddy Bear afghan

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It's been a while...

Ah, so many things have happened in the past month or so, I don't even know where to begin. First we had our car accident (which we are still dealing with, and we still don't have a second car to call ours), then my computer crashed - with over 2,500 pictures on it. Mostly of Baby E. I was so upset. My sister's friend revived the computer, and saved all the pictures though! I can never thank him enough! Here are some other things I've been up to.

I made the Santa hat for Baby E to wear with her Christmas dress. I just realized that I don't have pictures of her actually wearing the hat, so I'll have to get one.

This is the bedspread that belongs to my neighbor. Her great-grandmother made it. Isn't it beautiful? From wear and tear, the delicate yarn (thread) had torn in a couple places, and I told her I'd be happy to repair it. Most were very small repairs - just joining stitched that had come loose, but there was one place that needed some pretty significant help. I had bought the smallest crochet hook I could find at the time, and I wasn't really happy with the repairs in that one area. Since then, I have found even smaller steel hooks, and have added them to my tool pouch. Next time I see the neighbor, I'll let her know I'll be happy to attempt that area again. It was such an honor to work on this. I can't imagine the hours, and the love put into the spread by her great-grandmother.

I've also finished an afghan for a friend, who's expecting a little boy. I'm so excited that it's completed, and ready to ship so far from the March due date! Usually, I'm pushing it to get them done.

I've also been working on Baby E's dress, and am making felt Christmas stockings for our little family, for next year. I'll post pics of those projects next time.

YammaDaddy and his parents got me a Cricut for my birthday, and man, am I excited! I'll be making my afghan tags with it, and cannot wait to learn all the cool features!

I'm so sorry I didn't get to post a special Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year post, so here's to a happy January!