Cynthia's Cynfully Spiffy Stuff

Crochet News: Hearts Of Love Group on Ravelry

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:27:49 PST

If you crochet or knit and you haven't done so yet, I highly suggest you join the community at Ravelry dot com. It's a wonderful place to meet some really great, very talented people with a knack for knitting or hooking.

Ravelry has a vast number of goal oriented groups one can join, one of them being "Hearts Of Love". The group, Hearts Of Love, was founded by "Seasidepurl" in April 2008 and as of this moment has 2564 members in it. The purpose of the group is not just to chit chat, not just to share photos of projects that members have knitted or crocheted, but to construct things like chemo caps to donate to what Seasidepurl calls "Cancer Warriors" of all ages, to fight and beat cancer, to make the world a brighter place for them. To warm their hearts and their heads with something made by the members of the group.

This year the members of the group have been presented with a challenge by Seasidepurl. The challenge is not too difficult to achieve, it's simply to make one chemo cap per month, from a pattern she'll post each month, so there will be 12 chemo caps per participating member by the end of the year in December 2012. I'm trying to figure in my head how many chemo caps that would be if only half the members of the group participated - okay... Getting out my calculator... 15,384 caps! Remember that's if only half the members sign on to the challenge! That's a LOT of chemo caps and a lot of giving and a lot of happiness spread about the nation! wow.

So, I did sign on to the challenge and started my January chemo cap last night at midnight. I crocheted till one a.m. until it felt like my eyeballs were bleeding and I just couldn't make another stitch. The pattern for the January chemo cap challenge is the "Soft Seed Stitch Scarf And Hat" pattern and was a challenge for me since I've never made the seed stitch before. I found it interesting and fun to learn and once I got to the round of 60 stitches it went along easy enough - just like the pattern says. In the previous rounds it's a bit challenging to place stitches in the proper places but stitch placement becomes more apparent in the latter rounds.

Here's the beginning of the cap which I was thinking looks rather small but after thinking twice about it realized it needs to fit tighter than most hats because chemo patients don't usually have hair taking up room underneath a hat to hold it on.

It's turning out beautifully, I think, it's soft like the pattern name, and with the seed stitch, it has an interesting texture and will provide the warmth it is intended to provide. I like this color too - this is Caron Simply Soft (which is what the pattern calls for) in the color "Ocean". For anyone making this hat and having trouble with it, I made a seed stitch tutorial that may help (or confuse!) you HERE.

I'm already looking forward to starting the chemo cap for next month and I haven't finished this one yet! yikes! A big "THANK YOU!" to Seasidepurl for creating the Hearts Of Love group, for being such a mindful, attentive moderator of the group, and for presenting the group's members with this wonderful challenge that I, for one, am so looking forward to accomplishing this year. I know the chemo caps will warm the heads and hearts of cancer patients wherever they end up. God bless you, sweet lady, for being so giving of yourself when you have so much going on in your own life with your mother. May God grant you all you require, everything you need to be happy and comfortable and the strength to take care of your mother in this difficult time.

Crochet Tutorial: Seed Stitch

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:22:10 PST

In an earlier post I mentioned the Soft Seed Stitch Scarf and Hat pattern and thought I would post a quick photo tutorial for the seed stitch for you.

After working a round of making stitches in the BLO (back loop only) of previous row :

sc in first st, dc in unused loop of next stitch:

This photo shows how the unused loop of the stitch from the previous row lines up with the stitch above which you leave unworked. You only work the dc into the bottom loop as shown below (hopefully)

Red arrows indicate where a dc is worked. An "X" is where you do not work a stitch. The white arrows show where the sc is worked. Hopefully this helps. Here's a few more photos that may help you see how it's supposed to look and one showing the dc pulled forward to skip a stitch and sc in the next.. (You skip the stitch that the dc would have been made in if you were working in that same row.)

Above the photo shows end of hook pointing to the unused loop of stitch of previous row (between two dcs) - the loop where the dc will be worked.

Photo above shows the dc just worked pulled forward (at the asterisk), exposing the stitch that you will skip and working the sc in the next stitch.

I hope this helps and does not confuse!

Good luck and have fun!

In Memory Of And To Remember And To Make Aware

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:11:28 PST

(I am liking the washcloths in the bottom photo - they are pink and grey - green camo for the Pink Ribbon Army cloths the most but I will make pink cloths of all variations because we all have different tastes from one another. The black cherry is nice too - the dark pink, black and white one on the upper left)

I am making pink camo wash cloths for the Pink Ribbon Army a lot these days to sell. The proceeds from the sales of the wash cloths and other Pink items I make will go to the Pink Ribbon Army to help Breast Cancer Research. I am doing this in memory of my mother who passed away from breast cancer on October 27, 2011.

Mom had the type of breast cancer called IBC or Inflammatory Breast Cancer that does not show up as a tumor in mammograms. The radiologist gave us the "all clear" following her mammogram a few years before Mom's death so at the time we thought everything was okay and cheered the good news.

When Mom's breast became more and more deformed - with no pain existing in the area, I became alarmed and took her back to our family physician who took one look at her breast and sent us off to an oncologist who told us then that Mom had breast cancer. It was the inflammatory type that is in particles, not tumorous, and spreads rapidly and sneakily because it cannot be seen with a mammogram or ultrasound.

There is a case of a sixteen year old young lady who died of this same type of breast cancer, needlessly, because she was too embarrassed about her deformed breast to tell her mother or doctor about it. When she finally did tell someone it was too late - as it was in my mother's case - and the cancer had spread into her lymphatic system. The young lady was not aware of this type of breast cancer as many are not aware of it.

My mission is to raise awareness about this sneaky type of breast cancer, IBC. Even if you have mammograms every year or every six months, it is important to do your self exams and in the shower is a great place to do them. That is why I'm making the wash cloths, to remind ladies to take a few minutes once a month to do their self exams while in the shower. With each washcloth I'll give a self-exam checklist as well as a fact sheet about IBC.

So... Recap: In Memory of Mom, To Remember to self-exam, To Raise Awareness. All in one simple washcloth. I'll let you know how the sales of these go this weekend when I try them out at my yard sale. Keeping my fingers crossed!

List of resourceful links from this post:

National Breast Cancer Foundation - Self Examination

Join The Pink Ribbon Army On Facebook

About IBC - Inflammatory Breast Cancer

Pattern For Washcloth On Coats And Clark Website and its PDF Download

Family Recipe: Nana's Post-Christmas Turkey Soup/Feel Good Soup

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:43:34 PST

Here's Nana's recipe, just as scribbled on a note card by her I don't know how many decades ago...
(I've inserted a few notes, in parentheses to help things along, I thought it was kind of humorous the way Nana wrote it.)
------
June! (My Mom's name)
Turkey soup for Dad:

Put turkey carcass into pot, cover with water
(I used a very large crock pot and added a can of chicken stock but the stock is not necessary)
Simmer on low heat until meat comes off bones.
Pick meat off bones with fork, be careful. It's hot. (duh Nana! lol)
Give bones to dogs. (I wouldn't do this, they splinter and could cause your dog to choke to death, or so I've heard. I threw our bones in the trash. lol)
Simmer turkey meat in broth on low.
Chop carrots, garlic, onion, celery. Add to pot.
(I simmered my vegetables in olive oil first till they were a bit tender to release the flavors and then threw all including the olive oil into the crock pot. I also added about half a teaspoon to a full teaspoon, depending on your taste, poultry seasoning - if you don't have that, ground thyme would do but don't use too much as it's a very strong spice. Half a teaspoon would do in a large pot of soup. You don't want to over power the flavor of the turkey.)
Add noodles, bring to boil, simmer some more until noodles are done. If you don't know when the noodles are done ask your Dad. (Apparently Nana wrote this recipe for Mom when Nana had to be in the hospital for a little while and not able to be home to cook for my Grandad.)
(I cooked my noodles first because I was using the crock pot and wasn't sure if the noodles would cook right in a crock pot vs. in a pot on the stove that would be hotter. I use a lot of noodles in my soup, people in my family have lost quite a bit of theirs and can always use the extra. lol)
Give him some bread or saltines too and don't forget his ice cream for dessert!
-----
That's it. Mom kept this recipe all through the years and I guess she "followed it" because we had the best turkey soup after everyone was done picking the meat off the bones when Christmas or Thanksgiving was over with. It's a simple, kind of heartwarming recipe that makes you feel good when you eat it because you know it came from the kitchen of Nana. It could have been my Nana or your Nana, anyone's Nana, the turkey soup recipe is kinda the same throughout our land, the soup sprang forth from someone's Nana's heart, that's where it got it's start.

Bon Appetite!

Crochet News: Sensations Angel Hair Yarn And A Tween

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 14:24:19 PST

As you probably know by now, I crocheted everyone's gifts this year for Christmas. Everyone seemed pleased with their gifts, and to my surprise, even Natalie - a TWEENager was happy with her hat! I didn't think anything but electronics satisfied tweenagers these days. I was wrong, thank goodness. Natalie was so happy with her fancy, extra soft Angel Hair hat that she wants me to make a scarf to match it. Yea! That was probably the biggest relief of all - to know someone was that happy with their gift.

This hat is made, as I said from Angel Hair Sensations by the Joanne's chain. I think it can only be found at Joanne's and it's not cheap, by any means. 1 small ball costs over six dollars unless you can get it on sale. It is a fabulous bulky yarn, though, and makes up a beautiful hat, scarf, top, and I'm sure it would make the softest, warmest sweater you've ever dreamed of.

The drawback of this yarn is how it knots up when you have to take stitches out if you make a mistake or change your mind about your project. The "angel hairs" get wound around the stitches when pulling them out - you can carefully snip the hairs that catch, usually without hurting the yarn but it's not easy to do.

Overall, this yarn is worth the money if you're making a special project for a special someone. It holds it's shape nicely and is soft and furry like cat hair or rabbit hair (or angel hair!). It comes in several solid colors as well as variegated colors. It goes fast, it seems like it disappears off the shelves as soon as it's stocked so when you go to get it, make sure you get enough for your pattern - it could be a while before you see your yarn stocked again. There's always the option, though, of ordering it online from the Joanne's dot com web site but that makes it very expensive, figuring the shipping costs.

Tell me what you've made with this yarn, I'd love to get some ideas for next Christmas!

Crochet Pattern: Favorite Beanie For A Lady

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 12:25:55 PST

Of all the hats I've made I think I like this one the best. It's fast and easy to make if you already know how to do the cross stitch. If you don't know how to make a cross stitch there are several video tutorials on Youtube but you ought to be able to figure it out from the written directions below.

If you haven't already guessed, the cross stitch is one of my favorite stitches to add a lacy, textured effect to my projects. It works well with ombre and solid yarn colors, and can be substituted for other stitches in almost any pattern you might be following.

For this beanie I used the cross stitch to give it a more lacy, lady-like effect and it looks marvelous on. It can be worn as most beanies are,

or the bottom can be turned up to make a cuff so more of your hair shows and giving the beanie an entirely different look.

Good Beanie, Bad Photography, Really Bad Hair

Pattern For Favorite Beanie:
(Note: beg ch 3 of each round counts as a dc)

Using an H hook and worsted weight yarn (I use Painted by Red Heart - it's a pleasantly soft yarn in beautiful colors that my photographs do not do justice)

ch 5, join with sl st to fifth ch from hook to form ring
Round 1: ch 3, 11 dc inside ring, join w/ sl st to top of beg ch 3 (12 dc)
Round 2: ch 3, dc in same st as joining, 2 dc in each st around, join to top of beg ch 3 with sl st (24 dc)
Round 3: ch 3, dc in same st as joining, dc in next st, (2 dc in next st, dc in next st) repeat ( ) around, join to top of beg ch 3 with sl st (36 dc)
Round 4: ch 3, dc in same st as joining, dc in next 2 st, (2 dc in next st, 1 dc in each of next 2 st); repeat ( ) around, join with sl st to top of beg ch 3 (48 dc)
Round 5: ch 3, dc in same st as joining, dc in next 3 st, (2 dc in next st, 1 dc in each of next 3 st) repeat ( ) around, join to top of beg ch 3 w/ sl st (60 dc)
Round 6: ch 3, dc in same st as joining, dc in next 4 st, (2 dc in next st, 1 dc in each of next 4 st) repeat ( ) around, join to top of beg ch 3 w/ sl st (72 dc)
Round 7 - 10: ch 3, (dc in next st ) around, join to top of beg ch 3 w/ sl st (72 dc)
Round 11: ch 3, (skip 2 st, tr in next, ch 1, tr in first skipped st) repeat around, skipping last st and sl st into top of beg ch 3 to join.
Round 12: ch 3, dc in each tr and ch 1 sp around, sl st into top of beg ch 3 to join.
Round 13-16: repeat rounds 11-12 respectively

Round 17-18: ch 1, sc in each st around, join to first sc with sl st
Fasten off, weave in ends, enjoy!


Cross Stitch Up Close

When making the cross stitch, hold the stitches on the hook together as you're yo and drawing through, that way your stitches won't become super elongated when back tracking to the previous skipped stitches (the cross over stitch that makes the X). Also, be careful about which tutorial videos you watch for this stitch. Here's one that is for a dc cross stitch but it's done correctly with the same idea in mind. With a dc cross stitch you use a dc instead of a tr and skip 1 stitch rather than 2. I prefer the tr cross stitch, it's a much more dramatic effect and being the drama queen that I am, well, you get the idea. heh, heh.

O.T.: Happy Holidays??? Happy HOLYdays!

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 19:18:39 PST

Happy HOLIDAYS? Yea, R-I-G-H-T! It's MERRY CHRISTMAS! This is a Christian holiday marking the birth of our dear Savior Jesus Christ. If someone is offended by that let them move to a country where people are not Christians and do not celebrate the birth of Jesus. (Good luck on finding one).

I am tired of Christians allowing people who are "offended" by our long-lived Christian traditions and beliefs. I am offended that they took the cross off of our Los Angeles City Seal. I am offended that my children were not allowed to pray in public schools and that I had to PAY to send them to a Christian school where they could pray! I am offended that our leaders are taking Christ out of OUR Christmas, telling the nation that the Bible is out-dated and "needs to be changed", that our Constitution is "obsolete" and "not up with the times".

I'll have you know, for those of you who don't, that this country was based on its belief in God and the Bible. I'll have you know that by trying to take God out of our country, you are destroying everything this country was built upon. Ronald Regan said, "If we ever forget that we're one nation under GOD, then we will be a nation gone under." Well fellow Americans, that is exactly what's happening! It's about time we stood up for OUR rights as Christians and took our country back!

Mr. Obama, I don't know who you think you are that you should say OUR Bible is outdated and needs to be changed! I believe, sir, that you have been put in your place of power by those who WANT this country to fail and subcum to a One World Order, probably led by the Chinese. Don't they "own" us now as it is? All the money, trillions of dollars you've borrowed from them and Thrown Away keeps us under the thumb of the Chinese and I think that's exactly what you wanted to happen. You do not have America's best interest at heart. You do not even believe in the values and standards and traditions this country was so greatly built upon. You offend me, Mr. Obama. Your lies, deceit and trickery will not be overlooked for long. Real Americans are talking about the realities of all your antics and deciding for themselves that you are actually full of bull. We are going to take our country back and show you what America is all about.

Now it is time for Americans to stand up for THEIR country, THEIR rights, THEIR religious beliefs and traditions. It is time we took back our country and stop allowing these false leaders to take this country away from us.

I am not sorry for this rant, if that's what you want to call it. I mean every word I said and will not shut up until we have our UNITED States of America back on track. I pray others already see what's happening behind the proverbial closed doors and tell others who will tell others and hopefully we will be reunited as a country again, put God back at the top of the heap, and regain control of our own lives. Big government is evil. The Global Dollar is nigh, so hang on to your panties. It can be stopped if we get people like Obama out of office. Do not bow down to his ways. It will be the ruin of everything this country stands for.

Vote in 2012 for your children's sakes and their children's sakes. Do not let Big Government control you. Be a person, be in control of your own lives, be in control of your government, don't let it control you. Use the internet to find FACTS about our government. There's a lot going on that you may not be aware of and it is all happening now, in YOUR lifetime, and will affect the lives of generations to come. If everyone keeps quiet then nothing is going to change. We still have time to turn things around, to inform people, to help ourselves. The government that provides everything for us - that takes so much control of our lives is the one who weakens us and makes themselves stronger with power and control. Do not let that happen!

Merry Christmas, Happy HOLYdays! Be in control of your own destiny. Be the person God intended you to be. Pursue Life, Liberty, And Happiness, and don't let the government take away your rights! Be offended and do something about it. For starters, look up Agenda 21 on YouTube. Also, Google Hal Lindey. Also try looking up Rex 84 but Agenda 21 is one of the best ones to discover what your leaders are up to. Hal Lindey has been a renowned author of prophetic books about the end of the times. He is a Christian (I don't care if you're offended, look him up anyway). He wrote "The Late Great Planet Earth" and other books based on the prophecies in the book of Revelations in the Bible. Hal Lindsey's wife used to teach Bible study at our church. The couple has no interest in anything except teaching what the Bible says to people who want to hear it. They are in the business of helping people discover things about their lives that can change the way a person lives. They are in the business of BETTERING people's lives, not taking control of them. I trust Hal Lindsey and the things he says are real, true, Biblical, and helpful. Believe what this man talks about. See for yourself, listen to a webcast by Mr. Lindsey. I hope you do. It won't be long when we are faced with things we'd never thought possible for our country to do to US. Things that are in the works at this very moment, working towards the betterment of a few people, not our country as a whole.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLYDAYS!

That's right. It may be "politically incorrect" to say the "C" word but this is MY blog and Christmas IS correct and it's perfectly fine, in fact it's more than fine to say "Christmas" on my blog or anywhere else as far as I'm concerned. Like someone on Facebook said, I am offended at the mere thought of taking Christ out of Christmas! If you don't like me saying Merry Christmas to you, then don't say it back. Let it roll off your back. Do not expect me to change my religious traditions to suit you. This IS a Christian country. If you don't like Christians then MOVE to another country where there aren't any. (Good luck on that.)

Crochet News: Hats Off To Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:41:25 PST

...or should I say "Hats On To Christmas"? I've been doing a lot of sitting in our dear doctor's office waiting with my son and my daughter (each having malfunctions of their very own), and while sitting for a few hours waiting to see our beloved doctor, I crochet to keep myself from going nutso.

I purchased a big backpack-type bag at a thrift store for a few bucks and it works perfectly to carry all my stuff for crocheting in. (Only problem is, a lot of stores won't let a person carry in a backpack to their store while shopping and want me to leave it at a register while I shop. Yea, R-I-G-H-T! So for shopping, the pretend Prada backpack-type bag stays home but for a doctor's office visit and trips to friends' houses, perfect.)

Hats are in. If they aren't, they will be by the time I get through with Christmas this year. They are easy and fast to make and there are so many ways to make each one special for the person who'll be receiving it as a gift this year. Last year it was Fat Bottom Bags which everyone loved but since I line them and shop for just the right embellishment for them, they take up quite a bit of time for each bag to be completed. The hats are more practical because of the small amount of time they take to make and since everyone is getting a homemade gift this year, that time is very important. There's not that many days left before Christmas! I figure a hat takes only a couple hours of non-stop work, including the flower embellishments.

Here's another hat I've been working on. I've gotten many compliments on it which surprises me because I usually don't go out of the mainstream solid color for hats. I don't like attracting attention to myself and stick to black or grey. Just wearing a hat is going outside my box so a hat that is multi-colored and adorned with flowers is really going hog wild in my world. heh, heh. Seriously.

The only problem I had with this hat is that the yarn is too soft and the sides rolled up instead of staying put. It's okay apparently, like I said I got a lot of compliments on it. I lucked out with the thread for the flowers matching the colors in the hat. That was not planned, believe me. I am a lame-o when it comes to matching or blending colors.

I think this is hat number ten. But who is counting? I'd better start counting or I may come up short for Christmas! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Crochet Pattern: Easy Beaded Snowflake Earrings

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 12:49:06 PST

I have not been posting much lately due to depression and grief for the loss of my mother. I don't think it's something I'll get over but may overcome some grief at some point. Whether I do or not is not the point. The point is I've not been crocheting a whole lot, nothing to mention anyway. I do not have the energy or motivation it takes to do much of anything at all.

I wanted to do something for Christmas and these are all I could come up with so far. I hope you enjoy them.

For Beaded Snowflake Earrings:

Materials:
Size 10 crochet thread
Size 11 steel crochet hook
36 tiny beads, 2 small crystals
2 earring hooks (get at Joanne's) or tiny studs (with clear stone)

Follow directions from beginning to end twice.

Begin by stringing 18 tiny beads and then one crystal onto the thread
Chain 6, slide the crystal up to your hook, sl st into first ch (6th from hook) to form ring.
ch 1, sc inside ring.
** Ch 6, dc in 3rd ch from hook, work triple picot* (see instructions below), sl st into top loop and front post of previous dc, make dc in same ch as previous dc, ch 4, sc into ring** work directions between ** and ** six times total. Instead of working sc into ring for last repeat, sl st into first sc made to join.
Fasten off, weave in ends.
Spray heavily with fabric starch and press with hot iron to stiffen and block; be careful not to leave iron on work too long to avoid burning starch or melting beads if you used plastic beads.
Attach earring hook (or stud) into middle of one triple picot. Enjoy!

Triple picot: *ch 1, slide bead up to hook, ch 2, sl st in third ch from hook* work between * and * three times total.

Crochet Pattern: Easy Elegant Hat Band

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:28:34 PST

"A hat is a flag, a shield, a bit of armor, and the badge of femininity. A hat is the difference between wearing clothing and wearing a costume; it's the difference between being dressed and being dressed up; it's the difference between looking adequate and looking your best. A hat is to be stylish in, to glow under, to flirt beneath, to make all others seem jealous over, and to make all men feel masculine about. A piece of magic is a hat." (Martha Sliter)

I made another hat using this free pattern found on the Coats and Clark website: Decorated Crochet Hat & Scarf Project #WR1065 the pattern is a free PDF download direct from their site and suitable for crocheters of all skill levels.

I'm always looking for something to make my projects unusual and fancy as well as feminine and I think this hat band fulfills those requirements just fine. I added the beads (purchased at Walmart, I'm pretty sure) after the band was sewn on the hat but the beads aren't necessary because the band dresses up the hat nicely on it's own, especially if you add a crocheted flower or three. ;-)

I started by measuring the circumference of the hat where you want the band to lay and start chaining your thread (I used a size three thread and an 11 steel hook) ending up with a chain that is in multiples of 6 plus 1 ch for turning. (The stitch patten requires 6 stitches). It's better to have the band be a bit too long than too short and make your hat bunch up. You can always overlap the band where it meets, if necessary. You'll end up making over 220 chains to begin, depending on the circumference of your hat.

For Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across, turn
Row 2: ch 3, **skip 2 sc, (dc, ch 5, dc) all in next sc, sk 2 sc, sc in next, repeat from ** across, turn
Row 3: ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 5, dc in fifth ch from hook, sc in next ch 5 loop, ** (dc, ch 5, dc) all in next sc, sc in next ch 5 loop, repeat across. After working sc in last ch 5 loop at end, work (dc, ch 2, dc) all in last sc of row 2. Fasten off, weave in ends.

Easy peasy? Yes. Just a bit time consuming at first but once you get past row one it goes along quickly and it ends up looking like you spent days on it. ;-)

Crochet Pattern: Hat Junk

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 14:34:27 PST

"I myself have 12 hats, and each one represents a different personality." Margaret Atwood

Here's a hat I crochet, and patterns for the "junk" I added to it. I wrote the patterns after I made the "junk" so if there's anything wrong with the patterns let me know but they're simple enough that you could probably do them on your own but just in case, or to give you ideas to make your very own "junk", here's my patterns...

For starters I crocheted the hat for which the pattern can be found for free PDF download from the Coats & Clark website HERE as t.v. project #WR1065.
The hat is fun and easy to make, takes no time at all. They go great with Fat Bottom Bags, by the way, in case you were thinking of Christmas gifts for someone special... I gave a few sets of hats and bags away last year for Christmas and everyone said they really loved them a lot. ;-)

Patterns For Hat Junk:

1. (Can't remember where I learned this pattern a long time ago, will post credits as soon as I figure it out. Posting from memory, as I crochet it from memory.)

This is for the swirly leafy thingies on either side of the rest of the hat junk:

With size 10 thread and size 11 steel crochet hook, ch 28. sc in second chain from hook and in each ch across to last ten chains, then 2 sc in every other ch to end.
Row 2: ch 4, (skip 1 sc, dc in next) across (work will have bend in the end you increased sc's)
Row 3: ch 1, (sc in next dc, 3dc in ch 1 sp, sc in next dc) across end with sc in last dc . Fasten off, weave in ends but don't trim - use them to sew onto hat.

2. White Flower: ch 6, join to first ch with sl st. ch 4, (dc, ch 1) X 11 inside ring, join to third ch of beg ch with sl st. Round 2: ch 1, (sc, dc, sc) all in next ch 1 sp around, join to first sc with sl st. Round 3: ch 2, sc in BACK of first petal made (in Round 2) using two dc posts, ch 3, **sc in back posts of next dc (in next group), ch 3, repeat from ** around, ending with sl st into first sc made. Round 4: sl st into first ch 3 sp, ch 1, **(sc, hdc, 3dc, hdc, sc) all in same ch 3 sp, repeat from ** around end with sl st in first sc made to join. Fasten off, weave in ends. Don't trim off center tail (beginning thread) so you can use it to sew flower onto hat.

That's it for now, I can't seem to bring myself to write anymore patterns right now, these were written before my mother passed away. Another one I had written is for a hat band, posted following this post. Thank you for your understanding, support, and encouragement in this very difficult time for me.

cyndi

Caregiver Notes: In The Aftermath

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:01:32 PST

This will be my last caregiver post.

Things I Learned After Mom Died

There is no one in the world who will love me as much as Mom did.

There is no one who deserves my trust like Mom did.

No one else will listen to me or understand me the way Mom did.

Mom was the only one on earth who would never give up on me, no matter what.

Saying the words "I love you" may feel uncomfortable at the time but are worth it so someone can hear how much you care before they won't be able to hear again.

Making promises and keeping them is more important to me than to the other person.

Spending time with someone - even just sitting quietly together, lets a person know they are cared about.

Today is the only day that is guaranteed. Tomorrow may never happen.

No one will mean so much to me as Mom, and I'll never mean as much to anyone else as I did to Mom.

Mom was dedicated, devoted, and determined to be the best Mom possible - and she was.

Mom didn't want to leave us because she was worried about us - it felt like God had to rip her soul right out of her body, she was that unwilling to go. Making Mom worry about us was the worst thing I could have done to her.

I'm grateful for all the time I was able to spend with Mom and even though it meant me being home instead of joining friends to shoot pool or taking a camping vacation, I wouldn't change a thing.

Mom made things so easy for me when taking care of her, but it was the hardest thing I've ever done. I wouldn't change anything - I'd do it all over again for her, even if she made things difficult for me. ;-)

Mom's in Heaven with my Dad now. I know she's watching over us, that's probably the only way she'd let God take her to Heaven -- if He promised she could watch over us. This reminds me of Mom's favorite church hymn; His Eye Is On The Sparrow.

Thank you for letting me be your caregiver Mom. See you later.

Until Further Notice

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:24:27 PDT

I will not be posting for a while as I cannot bring myself to say much of anything or do much of anything either. We are laying Mom's body to rest today and I am still just numb since she passed on.

Hopefully God will give me whatever I need to bring myself through mourning and get back into living life again very soon. Right now I don't see light at the end of the tunnel, everything seems to empty to me. I'm blessed to have my kids and boyfriend here with me, thank God for them.

Thank you all for your prayers and support through this trying time of my life. Watching Mom pass on was the hardest thing I've had to do thus far in my life, I don't ever want to have to go through that again. Please pray God removes the images that are burned in my brain from those moments when Mom passed on.

Please remember to check yourself and get checked for early signs of breast cancer. There are kinds that do not show up on a mammogram (like Mom's cancer) and aren't usually discovered until it's too late. Donate to a reputable breast cancer foundation (for which I do not have time to give you links at the moment sorry)

God bless you all
cyndi

Caregiver Notes: Heaven Is Blessed With Another Angel

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 10:40:21 PDT

On October 27 at about 2:30 am I had the honor and privilege of helping my mother pass on into Heaven. Four or five days before this time she came down with a flu that had her throwing up everything we tried to put in her and then some. She never recovered from the flu. Dehydration made her weaker each day until she could not speak or swallow. Her breath became short and rapid. She still said she was not having pain even though the breast cancer had started to break down her veins and arteries in her chest and she was bleeding out.

I made her as comfortable as possible and experienced her dying, something I'll never want to do for anyone ever again. It was not peaceful, not pleasant. There was nothing I could do to stop it. All I could do was hold her and tell her how much I loved her and what a great Mom she was.

When it was all over I left the room and told my boyfriend who went in to check her. I kept seeing her chest rise and fall but that was probably wishful delusions. He said she was gone so I called hospice and they sent a nurse to pronounce Mom's death officially.

Mom's funeral is coming up this week. I don't know how I'm going to get through it. I realize I am being selfish in wishing she weren't gone. I still need her. She was always there for me and I feel like I was there for her when she needed me but not enough to make her well again (which was impossible, I know). She is in Heaven, she is perfect, she is not suffering and has no pain. She is with my father and her mother and brother and I ought to be grateful. Still, I can't help but miss her terribly and wish this were all one big long nightmare that will be over with as soon as I wake up.

I'll post a few crochet patterns as soon as I can. I can't make any promises when that would be, hopefully soon, but I haven't felt like doing much of anything at all but stay in bed and try to distract myself with the computer.

I wish the people who are spying on me and ruining my life and making everything harder on me and making me wish I were dead would leave me the hell alone. I KNOW the voices are real. Everyone has been lying to me. I can't stand that they think it's okay to torture a person this way.

Thank you God for answering my prayers that Mom not suffer in the end and that I be there with her when she died so she wouldn't die alone. Thank you for giving me the strength to help her as much as she could be helped. Thank you for giving me such a wonderful mother who never gave up on me no matter what, and loved me even when I couldn't love myself.

Caregiver Notes: In The Face Of Death; Food For Thought

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 19:20:42 PDT

"...fear and the embarrassment of failure fall away in the face of death." ~Steve Jobs in speech at a Stanford University graduation commencement ceremony, date unknown to me.

It's all about Steve Jobs' death last night and today on the news. The man died of pancreatic cancer, something he'd been battling for several years. He knew he was going to die due to that cancer and lived his life accordingly - to the fullest, without regrets, fear, or the embarrassment of failure. He succeeded and triumphed and left behind a great legacy that made universal changes in the way the world does stuff. He changed the way we communicate with computers and each other. He was a brilliant man and apparently a wise one as well, from what I've heard of the things he's been known to say to his audiences.

The quote above (heard on tonight's news broadcast) caught my attention and actually stayed in my brain long enough for me to type it into a new post here because I immediately applied it to myself and what I'm dealing with in my life. Hearing Mr Jobs say those words made me want to apply those words to my life. Asking myself "What can I take from this man's experience with facing death that will help me and help my family?" I knew my question had already been answered and was "in the works", right in my own face and in the face of death.

I'll just say that in taking care of Mom and watching her age rapidly, become weaker, see that horrid cancer eat her up the way it is, seeing death slowly come closer and closer, sneaking up on her, I have had no choice but to be not afraid, to not fail, and to not be embarrassed by mistakes I might make. Keep on keeping on about sums it up, mildly to say the least, but it's what I can repeat in my head when I feel like quitting, giving up, or just plain running away from everything. Keep on keeping on Cyndi. Keep on trudging. You can do it, no matter what. God does not put anything on your plate that you can't handle. Pray. Pray. Pray.

So just in case you don't understand the point of this post, it's okay. I don't either. I suppose I had what Oprah would call an epiphany (spell checker wanted me to put epileptic there! HAHA~ that would probably make more sense~ HAHA~) and wanted to share this revelation to you. Sometimes we're looking for answers, think we need help or someone to tell us something about ourselves we didn't see ourselves. Maybe that's true. Thank you Mr Jobs for saying those words that told me I am doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing and I'm doing it just the way I'm supposed to be doing it. I do not fear being a caregiver - (just for what is going to happen afterwards) - and I don't have any reason to be embarrassed by any mistake I make no matter what kind of look Mom gives me when I goof. lol.
I am human, I am imperfect, and I am a worthy child of God.

Thank you for your "reminder" rainbows Lord!
(He knows what I mean. )

Off Topic:

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 00:02:16 PDT

I have to take time off from crocheting and being a caregiver so there's a friend's house we all go to where we can throw darts (at a dart board or our boyfriend, doesn't matter which it's all in good fun) or shoot pool.

Well, my friend's house (the one with the pool table and dart board/boyfriend's back) is mostly a place where the guys hang out to get away from the girls. It used to be anyway, until the girls started playing pool seriously. Take for instance my friend Joanie. She used to just goof off when shooting pool but now she's taking it a bit more seriously. There's a certain way Joanie shoots that we've dubbed "Joanie Pool". She can walk up to the table, shoot without aiming, watch as the balls fly around the table and look like nothing is going in a pocket, and turn her back - and one or two balls will sink into a pocket just like that. She's got what our pool table-owning friend calls "the luck of the Leprechaun on her shoulder."   Anyone who shoots a crazy 'round the table-doesn't look like anything's going in-oh wait!-two balls just sank!- kind of shot is shooting "Joanie Pool".

There's Butch Pool too, for the five rail, ball in the side pocket impossible shot that Butch seems to make at least once a game. If anyone happens to make a shot like that, at least one person in the small crowd will say something about "Butch Pool".

Playing Anthony Pool is when anyone shoots a ball and one or more balls bounce across the table, and one or more balls fall "off". (the table. and roll and/or bounce across the tile floor)... not something you want to learn how to do. Anthony Pool is probably something to avoid, it has a high possibility of being quite dangerous.   When the crowd yells Anthony Pool, people take cover. Even Butch's pitt bull runs out the door, tail tucked and ears pinned back.

There's Emily who just learned how to shoot pool. She got real good real fast. (grrr!) She doesn't like to loose though so it's difficult to want to play against her. She kind of talks the whole time you're trying to shoot and concentrate on your shot and she'll throw your game way off if you let something like that get to you. It's a sneaky way to win but she knows she can distract the guys real easy by talking - and by walking cuz she's usually wearing a short skirt or shorts and has pretty long, tan legs. (Yea, I'm jealous).

And then there's me. Ms. Inconsistent. I shoot really good shots once in a while but try to shoot like that all the time? Forget about it. I started out shooting pool really terrible. No one wanted to shoot against me because I was so bad I'd throw their games off. With pool, if you play someone better than you, you tend to play better yourself. It works the other way too - if you play with someone way worse than you, you find yourself playing your worst game ever. It's just like that with pool.

I was really bad and liked the game so much and was determined to get the guys to want to play pool with me the way they wanted to with Emily and Joanie (jealous), so I used to go to our local dive bar that is usually empty, and shoot pool there.   All by myself. I'd practice shots over and over until I got them right. Thing is, my memory is so bad, I never remember how I made some of those great shots I learned (when playing all by myself of course!) so I couldn't take my new knowledge with me to our friend's house and incorporate it into my pool playing there. I sucked and that's all there was to it.

Now I don't believe in luck. I am not superstitious or anything like that. It's just a weird quinky-dink that the night a grasshopper - which freaked me out totally! - flew into our friend's house, I became the champ of the pool table and have remained the champ ever since.... and I can't for the life of me figure out why. Don't tell me it had anything to do with a dang grasshopper (eeuuuw!) of which I am deathly afraid! Maybe it had something to do with the drink I slammed down my throat to calm my nerves after one of the guys got the stupid bug out of the house.

We shoot our games in that the winner is best two out of three. I won four of the guys that shot pool that night. No one else would shoot against me. One of the guys lost to me the first game and wouldn't play a second. (Macho man! heh, heh.) I thought this was fun, all this winning, was a good sportswoman about it all, and passed it off as "good luck" - even though I don't believe in luck. I stayed humble and modest while the guys (especially my boyfriend) cheered me on.

Next night: I played our pool-table-owner-friend who is really good at the game of pool, and I won the first two out of three games, right off the bat. Granted, he did "beat himself" the second game by scratching on the nine ball. (Did I mention we play nine ball there?) Anyway, the guys are afraid to play me now. I was making some totally incredible shots that scared me too. Now I have a new dilemma. The guys don't want to play me not because I'm so lame but because they don't want to loose against me! ACK! ACK! ACK!

My claim to fame, my glory as the undefeated champ of this man world will not last long I know this to be true. But it sure is fun while it's going on and besides, it really chaps Emily's hide, (the one with the nice legs) cuz I'm getting the attention and she's not. (Still jealous, I know. I'll have to pray about this apparently.)

Thank you Lord for answering my prayers to be a better pool player but did you have to answer my prayers so good? Can you make me a little less of a good pool player now? Please? Thank you Lord! Amen!
P.S. If you could find it in you to give me legs like Emily's I surely would not complain. Just saying. Amen.

Crochet News: Flowery Snowflake For Mom; Free Pattern

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 17:35:30 PDT

Here's my first snowflake pattern, I made this for Mom with flowers, she loves flowers so much. (And she's learning to love snowflakes, thank goodness! ha ha)

Flowery Snowflake To Crochet
by Cynthia Luciene copyright October 2011

You may share the pattern but you may not sell it. You may, however sell anything you make from this pattern.

Materials: Size 11 steel crochet hook, size 10 (bedspread weight) cotton crochet thread

Instructions: ch 10, join with sl st to form ring
Round 1: ch 5 (counts as 1 dc plus 2 ch). *dc inside ring, ch 2; repeat 10 times more, join with sl st to 3rd ch of beg ch 5.
Round 2: sl st into next ch 2 space, ch 1, *sc, ch 1, sc in same ch 2 space; repeat from * 11 more times, join to first sc with sl st.
Round 3: sl st into first ch 1 space, ch 12, * tr in next ch 1 sp, ch 7; repeat from * around to last tr then instead of ch 7: ch 3, tr into 4th ch of beg ch 12.
Round 4: ch 11 (counts as 1 tr + ch 7) ** all between () in next loop: (3 sc, ch 7, sl st into 6th ch from hook, *ch 5, sl st into same 6th ch; repeat from * three times = four petals made, ch 1, 3 sc ), ch 7, tr in next loop, ch 7; repeat from ** around until last sc worked and then instead of last ch 7: ch 3, tr into 4th ch of beg ch 11 to join.
Round 5: ch 9, sl st in 3rd ch from hook,
** ch 9 sl st in 8th ch from hook, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, ch 11, sl st in 5th ch from hook, ch 8, sl st in 7th ch from hook, ch 6, sl st in 5th ch from hook, ch 8, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, ch 9, sl st in 8th ch from hook, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, ch 3, tr in next loop,
ch 16, sl st in 4th ch from hook, ch 7 sl st in 4th ch, ch 4, sl st in same 4th ch,
ch 12, tr in next loop, ch 5 sl st in 3rd ch from hook; repeat from ** around until last ch 12 then instead of tr in next loop, sl st into 4th ch of beg ch 9 instead.
Fasten off, weave in ends.

Soak in liquid fabric starch diluted with water 50 %. Squeeze out excess water, lay snowflake flat on dry bath towel and roll up tight to squeeze out even more moisture.
Place waxed paper on top of box top.
Using rust proof pins, carefully pin the outer points of snowflake to the furthest positions they will go without disfiguring them. I liked to make every other one roundish, the others pointy for variety (see photo).
Allow starch to dry completely before hanging.
Store in tissue rather than plastic baggies so your snowflake won't mold.
I use a piece of fishing line for hanging on the tree, sometimes I add a red ribbon to the top of the fishing line. For hanging in a window and when I can't find my fishing line (MIKE!) I just hang it with those suction cup thingys you can get real cheaply this time of year at the Home Depot or Joanne's.
Beads and crystals can be added if they aren't too heavy. I would keep heavier crystals toward the center of the snowflake where it's stronger and use seed beads toward the perimeter of the snowflake so the points won't droop when it's hung on the tree.

Have fun!

Caregiver Notes: Death From The Ears Up

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 19:38:34 PDT

"Those who welcome death have only tried it from the ears up."

Wilson Mizner US screenwriter (1876 - 1933)

If you're Christian or any other religion that believes in Heaven or an afterlife that is perfect, free of pain and suffering, you've probably thought death is not really a bad thing but rather something to be welcomed and celebrated.

Death, in my mind has always been just that. Something I've always truly looked forward to mainly because of the pain and suffering I endure on a daily basis in my earthly life. For those of you who do not know, I am diagnosed with Schizoaffective Disorder and I have a degenerative spine disease that gives me quite a bit of pain all over and has been since I was twenty two years old. (I'll let you follow that link and look up Schizoaffective Disorder, it's too complicated to get into right now. In a nutshell it's like being bipolar and schizophrenic at the same time.)

It may sound selfish to you but I have a belief that God does not want us to suffer. I believe He wants us to be happy and comfortable. I realize my time here is not finished -- I'm still here. And I know "it's all in His time" and that I do not know what "His time" is. Yet I can't help but look forward to being in Heaven with Jesus, talking to God face to face, seeing my dear Dad again (he's been in Heaven since I was eleven) and, if she's there before me, seeing my mother there too.

The thing is, when having this strong desire to be in Heaven, to welcome death as it may come to any one of us at any time, thinking it would be a blessing, I have never really experienced the events that lead up to one's death (unless, of course, one dies instantly and suddenly). Seeing poor Mom suffer while dying from the breast cancer that has taken hold of her body, is eating her up from the inside out, causing her pain, to weaken, and her body to start shutting down, I never dreamed it would be like this for her - or for me. I never considered dying this way or that Mom would either. I always felt Mom would pass on quietly, in her sleep, no pain, no suffering.

Now that I'm seeing death below the ears and not just thinking it unrealistically above the ears, I'm not so sure I want it that bad anymore. I definitely don't want to see Mom go through this but it's completely out of my hands. It's all up to God and the only thing I can do is my best to make Mom comfortable and see to it that she's happy as possible.

Mom is afraid to die, we've talked about it. I didn't understand it at first because she's Christian, believes there's a Heaven, knows about the time my Grandpa was dying and I "saw" my Dad come and get Grandpa to bring him up to Heaven (Dad's twin was there too and "saw" the same). She has all the Biblical training, all the faith, all the belief. She's the strongest little old lady I know. Yet she's afraid to die. Now I understand why. It sucks to die. It hurts. It's painful, it's boring, it's suffering, it's long, it's hard, it seems like forever, it's final, and ... most of all ... it's leaving your children behind.

(Don't worry Mom. We'll see you when we get there too.)

Caregiver Notes: Hospice Has Arrived

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 18:26:48 PDT

Did you read my post about my hospice questions in Some Important Things To Consider?
It's the post where I was feeling confused and posted some good links for caregivers that you probably already knew about.

I had so many questions about hospice care - wondering if Mom was ready, what I am supposed to do when Mom does pass on, stuff like that. I was sitting at my computer desk next to Mom, thinking about picking up the seemingly one ton phone and call SCAN, my mother's health insurance, to see if they could send someone out to evaluate Mom for hospice care when the heaviest phone in the world startled me by ringing before I could make that call. It was my sister.

Susan, my sister, said she was talking to her doctor and told him all about our little situation here - about my mental disorders and about Mom's breast cancer and Parkinson's. She wondered if Mom was ready for hospice and her doctor offered to come to our home to check her and send a hospice team out within a few days to evaluate her! I couldn't believe my ears! It was an answer to my prayers! I didn't even have to make that dreaded hospice phone call, my sister did the "dirty work" for me and even has a doctor willing to make house calls, that is unheard of these days in L.A., or so I thought! Thank GOD!

The hospice nurses came out yesterday and I have to say I am very relieved. To know when your parent is ready for hospice is basically when the doctor says "There's nothing more we can do for your Mom/Dad". That is when you know. I wish I knew that a long time ago, we could have been getting wonderful hospice services a months ago. Here's some of what they'll be doing for Mom:

Monitoring vitals and checking Mom's cancer wounds a few times a week
Showering Mom - actually in a shower twice a week (thank God, I am not able to do this for her anymore due to my back troubles)
Providing comfort medications, equipment, just about anything to help Mom be comfortable
Nurses AND doctor are available on call to answer questions, provide pharmaceutical support if pain gets really bad 24-7 , or anything else that comes up
Providing some med-surgical supplies like tape, sterile bandages, etc. that cost so much in the store
Able to provide hospital bed, wheel chair, shower chair, anything else we may need for Mom that we don't already have
Oxygen canister, and a portable one she can use to enable her to walk her ramp outside and get exercise and fresh air
More...

I am very pleased but Mom not so much at first. She does not like the idea of someone else taking care of her. I reminded her how much she would like to shower and that I am not able to do that for her anymore because of my back and voices get really bad for me in the bathroom with the water running. It could become dangerous for me or Mom with both conditions so I had to stop showering her and resort to daily sponge baths.
I told her (and this is what the hospice nurses told me) that they are there for her - to help her. They are not there because they expect her to pass away within a month or two. I told Mom she could live another year or two or more! (I didn't want her to be afraid). In reality it could be anywhere between six months and a year. Either way, the nurses reassured me it was time for Mom to be hospiced and we did the right thing by calling them in. (Thank you Susan!)

On the other hand, it makes it all final. It makes Mom's eminent death a reality and that's what has my sister and I so upset. This is real and we are dealing with it the best we can. Some days not at all - some days it's a crying fest and that's okay cuz at least Mom knows we love her, right? Some days it's just sitting with Mom and being quiet n each others presence and knowing we are loved, one by the other, without having to say a word.

I love you Mom, I'm really going to miss you when you're not here but I'm so excited for you that you get to go to Heaven and be with Dad and Jesus. I want to be with you, holding your hand when you go to Heaven so I get to see or feel Dad there, coming to get you to bring you up to Heaven with him as I know he's going to.

Crochet News: Working A Cross Stitch Pattern Into Your Granny Square

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:54:48 PDT

I guess I was extra bored with making squares to enlarge my boyfriend's afghan (which will never be large enough for him!) and I got off on a creative tangent. I presented myself with a challenge and for once I ended up with something I am proud of.

Today I pulled out my dog-eared copy of Leisure Arts little books #75009, Beginner's Guide Crochet Stitches and Easy Projects.

I love this book when I want to refer to an old school stitch pattern. The cross stitch is my favorite, and having a half-worked square made for my boyfriend's afghan that I didn't really feel like finishing, I wondered if I could incorporate my favorite stitch into this square that was burning the palm of my hand and seemingly making my hook shiver at the very idea of hooking another stitch for it.

I assured my palms and hook we'd not finish the square as usual but try something new and different and, well, a bit wild (for us, anyway) and we'd forget the afghan for now. The other two of us cheered and danced about while I reviewed the cross stitch instructions to be sure it would work with the number of stitches on each side of the square I had started. One side proved to be in a multiple of three stitches so I went for it, not caring if the others would be in threes or not. I would make it work or die. I simply could not make another afghan square right now, and that was final.

Here's the result of our experiment, the three of us (my palm, the hook and I) are very pleased with it:

I showed a closeup for two reasons:

1. I finally remembered how to make the macro setting work on my digital camera so I'm showing off,
and
2. I wanted to show anyone whose never made or seen a cross stitch just how very cool it truly is, in detail, um, closeup. ;-)

A tutorial on how to incorporate the cross stitch into your granny square is HERE or can be found in PDF format which is more printer friendly HERE

Crochet Tutorial: Working The Cross Stitch Into Your Granny Square

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 17:53:26 PDT

Tutorial For Using A Cross Stitch Pattern In Your Granny Square
Before beginning please read instructions all the way through.

For same instructions in a more printer friendly format, go HERE (free PDF download)

The cross stitch works in sets of three stitches so your rows must be in multiples of three. The sides of this square are 12 stitches across, counting the middle stitch in the corner group.
That is important for later.

Instructions for cross stitch:
Skip two stitches, tr in next stitch, ch 1, tr in first skipped sc (skip 1 sc going to the right and tr in next stitch to the right)

Start by attaching the contrast yarn at any corner with a sl st. and ch 4 (counts as a dc + ch 1)
Work the cross stitch across the side to the end.
**Ch 1, dc in corner st (last worked st), ch 1, dc in same st, ch 1, work cross stitches across side of square to end, repeating from ** around until you reach last corner. After making last cross stitch on last side of square, dc, ch 1, sl st into third ch of beg ch. If using contrast yarn, fasten off, weave in ends.

Attach contrast with a sc in ch 1 of cross stitch. (If not using contrast, ch 1, sc in next st) Sc in each tr , dc, and ch 1 spaces across all sides in all corners as well. Fasten off, weave in ends.

The photo below shows what the corner group looks like when finished.

You can make a more defined corner, of course, if you add two sc to the corner st of the square, which I did not do because I didn't think of it till I saw this photo and noticed how round the corners were. I would put the two extra sc in the first dc of that corner.

The cross stitch makes a great border for a granny square or a wash cloth or dish rag. If you're more talented than I you can probably add granny square rows following the cross stitch rows.

Caregiver Notes: Reasons Why You Should NOT Be A Caregiver

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 21:59:06 PDT

Here are just a few reasons why you should not be a caregiver. See if any apply. (None probably will)

You don't want to get to know your parent on a deeper, more personal level
You don't want to find out your parent really does have child-like qualities and a wonderful sense of humor just like you do.
You don't want your parent to be as comfortable and happy as possible.
You think convalescent homes are a more desirable place for your parent to be, more so than their own home with their own family.
You have no time to take care of your parent who spent almost every minute of every day of your life caring for you and making sure your needs were met.
You don't think you could stand wiping your mom's or dad's butt or changing their diapers for a few years... Even though they changed your diapers, cleaned up your vomit, kissed and bandaged your boo-boos, packed your school lunches, took you to the doctor, clothed you, fed you, helped you with your homework and college tuition, bought your first car (even if it was used), took you just about everywhere they went, made sure you went to church every Sunday and sat down to a family dinner every night....

If you agree with any of those reasons, then please don't be a caregiver for your parent. If you think you can't do it for any reason, let me tell you - you probably CAN.

If anyone has an excuse or five to not take care of her dying mother, it's me. I want to bail out so often it's not funny - but I don't. I make myself look into my mother's trusting bright blue eyes and I see all the love she showed me throughout my life, even though she never really said the words, she showed me she loved me by being there for me no matter what. Now I am blessed with the opportunity to show her the same love and be here for her, no matter what.

I push out the pain, I tell voices to go away, come back when I'm done with Mom's bath, and draw my strength from memories of Mom stroking my forehead when I had my tonsils taken out and my throat hurt so bad I couldn't talk. Or the time I came down with the flu and couldn't go camping with the rest of the family so she stayed with me and used her Mom ways to make me feel better, even though I was throwing up all over the place.

When I was sick I knew just how very much my Mom loved me. She could do anything. Even my Dad, the fireman who has seen things like body parts all over the freeway after a bad accident, couldn't take care of us kids the way Mom did. He literally freaked out if one of us so much as scraped a knee - he'd call out "June!! Do something!" and Mom would take care of whatever the trouble was. She could handle anything, even raising the four of us after Dad was killed (in the line of duty) - I was only eleven. There are four kids, all adopted so Mom took care of all of us trouble-makers by herself when we were still very young.

When I need strength I look at this tiny, frail woman and see all the strength she still possesses and know I can do this and I can do it without complaining or whining.

In the eight years of caring for my mother, I have grown to love her more than ever, to appreciate her strength and everything that she gave up in her life in order that us kids would have everything we needed. I discover something little (or big) about her almost daily, things I never knew or took time to notice before.

Being a caregiver for my mother is one of the most stressful, depressing, taxing, and role confusing jobs I'll ever have... But it's also the most rewarding, fulfilling, meaningful journey on which I'll ever embark and I wouldn't give it up for anything.

Crochet Review: Snowflakes Galore!

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:31:16 PDT

I stumbled upon a great site for snowflake pattern lovers everywhere! Oh boy! heh heh! If you look around for snowflake patterns at all you may have already found it but just in case let me share it with you.

Snowcatcher's Snowflake Directory has a multitude of free crochet snowflake patterns that are beautiful and unusual. I get tired of snowflake patterns that look just like the snowflakes I saw everywhere else. These snowflakes are very unique and absolutely gorgeous.

There's a pink ribbon snowflake I would like to make that incorporates the pink ribbon symbol (not just tying a pink ribbon around the flake) into the pattern. There's three dimensional flakes of several types, and beautifully colored ones as well. There's solid flakes, lacy flakes and in between flakes. There's beaded flakes and flakes without beads that don't really need beads because they're so pretty without the beads.

I am so grateful to people like the Snowcatcher for offering such beautiful patterns to us! My favorites on this page are the Third Red Mug Snowflake, the Pink Ribbon Snowflake,
and the Century Snowflake. Go check it out and share which ones you like best, if you've made any of the snowflakes on this site, etc. I am just about to start the Third Red Mug Snowflake - as soon as I post this~

Here's another snowflake I made - not from Snowcatcher's site, it's from Trish Kristoffersen's booklet South Maid #1410 Winter Jewels Snowflake 6. Winter Lace:

PLEASE don't pay attention to my dirty windows! hee hee!

Caregiver Notes: It's Funny How Things Work Themselves Out

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 18:34:30 PDT

Have you ever had something work itself out when you were at odds as to what to do about it? Just when you thought you would forget the whole thing or you were too overwhelmed to do anything at all, everything somehow fell into place just the way it was supposed to?

It rarely happens that way for me, mainly because I forget to pray about everything. Really. When I do remember to pray about something, I'm so desperate and frantic, I'm practically screaming and crying my prayer to God and He answers my prayers just to shut me up! No, not really, that's an exaggeration but not too much of one. heh, heh. If I sound like a tantrum thrower it's probably close to my reality. I somehow never really outgrew my two year old tantrum throwing phase, and it's okay if you now go "Euuuuww!" because my reaction to that revelation is the same as yours... Euuuuww!

All that aside, I did remember to pray about my questions regarding hospice for Mom recently and today I received an answer to my prayer. I was about to call Mom's insurance company because of a comment I read on my post about hospice that suggested I do so, and my sister called before I could make my call to SCAN.

My sister said she was talking to her doctor about the situation here with Mom and he said he would be happy to come out to the house to see Mom and to send someone out to take care of her medical needs AND her daily living necessities such as bathing, etc. I would still be here to sit with Mom, do the shopping, fix simple meals, etc., but the nursing care would be in the hands of professional people who would be getting paid for their services and the burden (and the stress) would be lifted from my shoulders. It would free me up a bit and make me feel less depressed and I believe I wouldn't hear voices quite as bad as I have been. (The more stress I experience the more voices I hear. I also tend to lay a lot of guilt on myself for not doing things exactly perfect, or for not doing enough, etc. which makes voices worse.)

It will benefit both Mom and myself to have medical professionals come help me take care of her, thank God for this wonderful answer to prayer! It's funny how it just kind of fell in my lap without me even having to make the call to Mom's insurance. It's like my sister knew what I needed and it all came together at just the right time, when I need it the most.

Thank you Susan for thinking of me and Mom so much, thank you God for answering my prayers, thank you Anonymous commenter who told me what I ought to consider for Mom's care, it really helped all this kick in. God bless all who pray for us!

Crochet Review: A Great Snowflake Pattern Booklet

noreply@blogger.com (Cynthia) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:58:18 PDT

Last year I found a great snowflake pattern booklet called Winter Jewels: 16 Snowflakes To Crochet, a South Maid article J-14, Book 1410, CC-C. (It's five books down in the list from that book link on her site and costs only $2.50 plus S&H from her site. The South Maid books are listed under the Coats & Clark category)

The snowflakes in this book are designed by one of my favorite designers, Trish Kristoffersen and by ordering it from her website, I got it for a great deal and sent to my home within a few days of placing my order, autographed by Trish herself. How very nice that was to see!

Here's Snowflake #6. Frosted Rose. I added beads and crystals and more beads to the thread before I started the project. The book says you can add beads and glitter later on but I happened to have some crystals I wanted to use and haven't had much luck trying to marry glue to crystal. In fact, I could never get the glue to stick at all except to my fingers and anything else I didn't want it to stick to but that's just me. It would probably work well for you.
The lower photo shows the beads and crystals a bit better... I think...

I am finding the snowflakes in Trish's book fast and easy to make, and they come out really beautiful, are strong enough to hold up the little crystals I add to it. They even look beautiful before I stretch and starch them (which I haven't done yet..)

Go check out Trish's website if you crochet - or even if you don't. Her designs are outstanding and beautiful to look at and enjoy no matter what your crochet skill level is.