Winter in Minnesota

Okay, I really can't complain about the horrendously awful Minnesota we've had, but it's still winter. Cold, windy, not-a-lot-of-sun...winter. And I live in Minnesota. So yes, it is a Minnesota winter...just way milder than normal. This winter I've found myself doing a lot of crocheting - more than normal anyway. There's just something about sitting and working away with the soft yarn flowing through your fingers. Frankly, I find it very soothing and a wonderful escape after a long day...or week...or month. I've really gotten in to making infinity scarves - they're SO stinkin' warm to wear (not to mention CUTE), and they're fun to give as gifts! And the best part...I can make one in the amount of time it takes me to watch an episode of "The Bachelor" off my DVR. Yes, I just admitted I watch "The Bachelor". Sad, but true. Not as sad as my husband watching it with me though...with his spreadsheets of "Fantasy Bachelorette Picks". Seriously, you'd think he was at another Fantasy Football draft party each season premier. No joke, he sits with the laptop logging his "top picks". Strange.

Enough about that - here are a few of the scarves I've made lately...I've got them in pretty much every color - gray, brown, electric blue, pink, green...they're fabulous.

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Homemade Valentines

I have to admit, I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day. It's a silly excuse for people to get their feathers all ruffled as they scurry and scramble through the over-commercialized buildings we call stores in hopes to find the perfect way to say "I love you". How ridiculous that there's ONE day a year to profess our profound love for someone. Like I said, I'm not a fan. But the "mom" side of me can't overlook how excited the kids get about it, so last night we sat down and wrote out valentines for the kid's classmates.  We didn't go the traditional route (because heaven forbid we buy valentine's - oh no, we must MAKE them...that's what happens when mom is a graphic designer) - instead we made our very own. The kids got to pick out their favorite kind of candy to put in the valentines and then they helped me pick out what type of animal/character they wanted on their own. Peyton chose a dog and Carson was all about dinosaur-themed ones. Here's a couple of pictures of the finished products:

 (Sorry, Peyton's "girl" ones aren't assembled yet, so you only get pictures of Carson's "boy" ones)

Hope the classmates like them! :)

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Dishcloth Goodness

Remember how I said my Grandma Grace taught my 3 brothers and I how to crochet when we were just tiny little things? Well, lately I've fallen into my annual winter "funk" where as soon as the sun goes down I wanna crawl in to bed and hibernate. But that'd just be wasteful, right? Post-bedtime hours are my prime time to get stuff done - so no hibernating allowed. In an attempt to stay awake and to feel like I'm being productive even if I've parked my rear on the couch to watch a 'lil TV, I've started crocheting again. It's been a couple years, but now that the kids are older and I'm feeling a little more like I can breathe, I figured what the heck - let's get back to it! Some of my friends think I'm off my rocker (no pun intended...okay, maybe it WAS intended), but I'm fine with sounding like a 90-year-old grandma talking about my crocheting projects. It's all good. So I've been alternating between making a few things...dishcloths, because c'mon, who doesn't love a new dishcloth?! Then I've also been making some infinity scarves and coffee collars. But I like the dishcloths because they're so quick & easy to throw together - plus,  a couple weeks back it was 'Dollar Days' at Michaels and they had my favorite 100% cotton yarn on sale for $1/skein. Let's just say I stocked up...and now I've got all these lovely dishcloths that I think will make PERFECT gifts for friends, teacher, family, etc. Suhweeeet! So here are a few pics of my dishcloth goodness I've whipped up in the last couple of weeks (I'll have to do a separate post on my infinity scarves & coffee collars).

Don't ya just LOVE all the fun colors??? Just gave my first one out as a gift and it was a hit! :)

On a side note, where do you shop for yarn? Just curious...

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