Kim's Purse Scarf

I made this as a thank you present for Kim:

You see, she is learning how to oil paint and offered to paint a picture of Hershey.  Here it is:

 

The painting is done from this picture:

Didn't she do an amazing job??!!  My hubby thought it would be nice for me to make her something too!

Supplies:
Pattern: Purse Scarf by Haley Lottig
Yarn: Premier Yarn Serenity Chunky Weight DN600-15 Majesty
Needles: US Size 13

Scrap Spiral Hotpads

Here are some more projects to help use up my leftover cotton yarn scraps.

And another:

 

I had to pay attention a little more while I was making these since they are spiral so you have to count the number of pattern repeats.  I do like how they came out!

Supplies:

Pattern: Spiral Hotpad by Carol Schoenfelder

Yarn: Lily's Sugar N' Cream #19009 - Oriental Ombre, Bernat Handicrafter Cotton #00731 - Pinky Stripes

Hook: US 7 (4.5 mm)

Houndstooth Cloth #3 - Tangerine

Here is a crocheted dishcloth:

I really like this pattern!  It has a nice texture to it!  It was easy to memorize too.  Another great pattern from Theresa Jones!

Supplies:
Pattern: Houndstooth Cloth Quartet (#3) by Theresa L. Jones
Yarn: Lily's Sugar N' Cream #01699 - Tangerine
Hook: US 7 (4.5 mm)

Liebster Award

I received the Liebster award from Elizabeth this weekend.  Thanks for giving me this treasured award.  This reminds me, we need to plan our annual road trip to Inspiration Station.  I have a gift certificate that is waiting to be used!  Email me to make plans! :)

What is the Liebster award? Liebster means "favourite" in German, and the award is given by peers to fellow bloggers who have been able to inspire despite their small following. Once accepted, an award recipient must "pay it forward" by completing the following steps:

1) Post the award to your blog.
2) Link back to the person's blog who gave it to you and thank them.
3) Give the award to five bloggers with less than 200 followers that you appreciate and value.
4) Leave a comment on the five blogs you chose to let them know that they have been given the Liebster award.

Here are five blogs that I feel deserve to receive the Liebster award:

1) Amy from Knit...Purl...Wait, What? Damn...

I met Amy through Ravelry. Amy is a fellow knitter who loves to learn new techniques just like I do. She's a natural knitter and let's nothing stop her even when she broke her wrist.  LOL!  We still need to meet up at Web's too!!!

2) Rachel from Thoughts from a Compulsive Reader

I met Rachel over on Goodreads, we are both moderators of Fans of Amish Fiction group. I admire Rachel's reading ability. She goes to college full time, works, is getting married this summer and can read 3-4 books a week. I'm lucky to read a book a week while balancing work, home responsibilities and several craft hobbies. You are my reading hero Rachel!

3) Heather from Stamping Designs by Heather

Heather and I have been friends for over 17 years. She is a mother of two, stamper, scrapbooker, photographer and knitter. We craft together while we are away camping. She is my best friend and fellow crafter! I love you Heather!

4) Camille from A Book A Day

I met Camille over on Goodreads through the Fans of Amish Fiction group.  She another one of my reading heros!  She is finishing up her last year in law school and still finds the time to read and chat with us!  You rock, Camille!

5) Jenn from Stampin' Angel Jenn

I met Jenn on Splitcoast Stampers.  Although we've never met, we live about 30-45 minutes away from each other.  I admire her stamping abilities and that she manages to post a new card to her blog every day.  When I see her work and all her cool stamps, it makes me want to stamp more  I really should since my box of finished cards is getting rather thin!  Thanks for the inspiration Jenn!

Quilt for Mom

Two weekends ago, I decided to make my mom a quilt for her birthday in April.  I just purchased a book called Weekend Quilting Wonders that I purchased from e-patternscentral.com in digital form for my iPad for $4.95.  My hubby was away snowmobiling in Vermont so I decided to see if I really could make it in a weekend.  I could and I did!  Here it is:

Front

Back

This pattern was so easy!  I started at 10 am on Saturday by picking out the fabric, washing it, ironing it and cutting it.  I was able to have the center of the quilt, without borders, done by 8 pm including breaking for lunch, supper and playing frisbee with Hershey.  I jumped right back into it on Sunday morning at 10 am and I was finishing sewing on the binding when hubby pulled into the driveway at 5 pm.  So I was able to make it in 17 hours!  My hubby loved the pattern so much that I will be adapting it to a king size bedspread for us.

Waiting for Morning - Karen Kingsbury

Summary from Good Reads: As Hannah Ryan waits for her family to return home from a camping trip, she realizes she has everything going for her—a husband other women admire, two charming teenage daughters, and a loving Christian home. As the sunny afternoon turns into twilight, her uneasiness grows along with the shadows. Then a car pulls into Hannah’s driveway, bringing two police officers...and devastating news that shatters her life forever.  In the days that follow, Hannah struggles with unspeakable feelings of sorrow and rage—feelings that fuse into one chilling purpose for living: revenge against Brian Wesley, the drunk driver who has caused all her pain.  In her fury, Hannah shuts the Lord out of her life. She’s determined not to forgive Wesley or the God who allowed this tragedy to happen. Can two caring people help Hannah rediscover her faith...before bitterness destroys her?

Hannah Ryan receives the worst news imaginable, her family has been in a severe car accident which killed her husband and oldest daughter due to a repeat offending drunk driver.  Her perfect life has changed with a moment's notice.  Her goal is to get revenge on Brian Wesley for destroying her family and life.  While she is doing this, her surviving daughter, Jenny, feels guilty and desperately misses her father and sister.  Hannah gets involved in M.A.D.D. so much that she is not aware of Jenny and she turns her back on God.  Will Hannah find peace once the trial is through?  Can she fix her relationship with Jenny and God before it is too late?

This was a book with a very serious topic.  Drunk drivers kills thousands of people each year, many of which are repeat offenders.  I did like that the attorney was seeking a stronger charge against Brian hoping to change history in California.  Hannah turned her back on Jenny and God since the accident which could have caused more problems in her life.  Thankfully, God was still listening to her and was patiently waiting for her to realize it.

A special thanks to Blogging for Books and Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing for allowing me to review this book for them.

Scrap Trivets

I noticed that my bag of leftover dishcloth yarn was getting rather full.  So I found this pattern for trivets to use it up.  Here are some that I made:

Here are some more that are a round smaller than the pattern just to finish the yarn:

These are so quick and easy to work up.  I'll be using this pattern again with more scraps!

Supplies:

Pattern: Simply Cheerful Trivets by Jennifer Dickerson

Yarn: Spinrtie Cotton Cones - Blueberry, Bernat Handicrafter Cotton W275769 - Pansy, Lily's Sugar N' Cream 102002 - Batik, Lily's Sugar N' Cream 19003 - Quilt Colors

Hook: US 8/H (5.00 mm)

Destroyed Craft Room

Check out this "surprise" that I came home to a little over two weeks ago:

AND

Total craft room destruction!  I had a very rough day covering in Accounting while the controller was out on medical leave and the accounting manager left a month prior.  All I wanted to do was come home and work on the quilt I started over the weekend.  Thankfully, I took the shams I made over the weekend to work to show them off or those may have been shredded too.

Apparently, Mr. Hershey escaped from his crate in the kitchen and had a major party!  I lost 4 knitting magazines, 3 knitting books and 2 skeins of yarn.  I did not take a picture of it but one skein of yarn was pulled from the other bedroom, down the hall, into the living room, around the coffee table and was placed on the couch.  It wasn't shredded or broken, just pulled.  That never happens to me, that's why I wind all my yarn first!  LOL!

Needless to say, his crate has been moved into the other bedroom (with the door closed) and it has a padlock on it.  Since his crate has plastic sides (except for the front and back), he was able to push up the top to unlatch the top part and squeezed himself through the opening while keeping the bottom part latched.

I fixed him and I replaced two of my knitting books with digital copies on my iPad!!!  As long as he does not get at that, I am good!

Oceans Apart - Karen Kingsbury

Summary from Good Reads: A night that changed everything . . . Eight years ago, during a stormy weekend on the shores of Hawaii, Connor Evans broke his vows. He's kept his secret, until the woman from Connor's past dies, leaving behind a young son . . . Michele never thought her family was perfect, but they were happy. Now her family is on the brink of destruction. Will a lonely child help bridge the distance between them—before it's too late?

Connor Evans is an airline pilot who made a bad mistake. He had an affair with a Hawaiian woman named Kiahana during a stormy night. Eight years later, she dies in a plane crash leaving behind her seven year old son named Max. In her will, she has requested that Max spend two weeks with Connor, his father, before being handed over to the state for adoption. Connor and his wife Michele, did not know of this child until this point.

Will Connor and Michele open their hearts and their home to Max? Will Michele be able to live with Max since he is a constant reminder of the affair? Will their marriage survive this? You'll have to read the book to find out the answers.

This was another wondeful book by Karen Kingsbury! This was a difficult topic to explore. Personally, I don't know if I cold be as strong as Michele if it were me. It takes lots of love, forgiveness and faith in God to make it through it. This is also a reminder that God's plan for you may not be the same as your own plan.

Every Now and Then - Karen Kingsbury

Summary from Good Reads: In a gripping story of danger and heroism, L.A. sheriff's deputy Alex Brady fights crime during the worst fire season in California's history. Now he faces the ultimate test. Will he have the courage to open his heart to love again?

Alex Brady is sherrif's deputy in L.A. with his K-9 partner, Bo.  Alex moved out to California after graduation from high school after losing his father, an FDNY firefighter in Manhattan, to the attacks from September 11th.  Since that day, Alex has closed his heart to everyone, his family, his girlfriend Holly and God and focused on fighting crime.  Clay Michaels works with Alex and Clay's wife Jamie, is determined to try and help Alex cope with his father's death.

There is an environmental group called the REA who have been targeting new housing developments by starting fires to them as protest for the country becoming materialistic and not caring for the environment.  Alex is so focused on getting this group that he goes undercover as a member of the group to find out their plans in his spare time.  When a fire breaks out in a development that he knew about, Alex is determined to arrest the arsonists and stop this from happening again.  While he is there, tragedy strikes and it changes Alex's life forever.

Again, I felt that this book was a little predictable but the story kept your interest.  I enjoyed how everything worked out in the end.  This was the first series that I have read from Karen Kingsbury and I thoroughly enjoyed it!  I have purchased several of her stand-alone books that I will be reading before jumping into purchasing another series.  I am looking forward to writing more reviews on her books in the near future.

Beyond Tuesday Morning - Karen Kingsbury

Summary from Good Reads: The hope-filled sequel to the bestselling One Tuesday Morning

In this new novel by Karen Kingsbury, three years have passed since the terrorist attacks on New York City. Jamie Bryan, widow of a firefighter who lost his life on that terrible day, has found meaning in her season of loss by volunteering at St. Paul's, the memorial chapel across the street from where the Twin Towers once stood. Here she meets a daily stream of people touched by the tragedy, including two men with whom she feels a connection. One is a firefighter also changed by the attacks, the other a police officer from Los Angeles.

But as Jamie gets to know the police officer, she is stunned to find out that he is the brother of Eric Michaels, the man with the uncanny resemblance to Jamie's husband, the man who lived with her for three months after September 11. Eric is the man she has vowed never to see again. Certain she could not share even a friendship with his brother, Jamie shuts out the police officer and delves deeper into her work at St. Paul's.

Now it will take the persistence of a tenacious man, the questions from her curious young daughter, and the words from her dead husband's journal to move Jamie beyond one Tuesday morning.

"Jamie Bryan took her position at the far end of the Staten Island Ferry, pressed her body against the railing, eyes on the place where the Twin Towers once stood. She could face it now, every day if she had to. The terrorist attacks had happened, the World Trade Center had collapsed, and the only man she'd ever loved had gone down with them.

Late fall was warmer than usual, and the breeze across the water washed over Jamie's face. If she could do this, if she could make this journey three times a week while Sierra was in school, then she could convince herself to get through another long, dark night. She could face the empty place in the bed beside her, face the longing for the man who had been her best friend, the one she'd fallen for when she was only a girl."

 

This is the sequel to One Tuesday Morning and it has now been three years since the attacks on the World Trade Center on 9/11/01.  Jamie Bryan is working at St. Paul's Chapel to help counsel visitors with grief.  She believes that it is her calling from God to help others work through their pain from their losses.  One day on her way to the chapel, Jamie encounters some trouble from some young adults on the ferry ride.  Two officers were on the boat and came to her rescue.  They were police officers from LA in NYC for detective training, one of which is Clay Michaels.  Jamie and Clay make an instant connection and spend lots of time together while he is there for two weeks.  Will Jamie allow herself to have feelings for Clay?  How will things work out when he heads back home?

I thought this was a great continuation of the first book.  I loved how she brought Clay into the story with Jamie.  This story was a little predictable since the reader knew who Clay was before Jamie did but I still enjoyed reading on how their relationship developed.  I will be reviewing the final book of this series, Every Now and Then, next.

One Tuesday Morning - Karen Kingsbury

Summary from Good Reads: On the morning of September 11, 2001, two men meet in a smoky stairwell of the World Trade Center. Only one will leave the building alive--and will unknowingly assume the other man's life.

One Tuesday Morning is a story about 2 separate families in different areas of the country and how their lives were changed forever from the events of September 11, 2001.  Jake and Jamie Bryan live in Staten Island with their four year old daughter, Sierra.  They have been in love since childhood and married after college.  Jake is a firefighter for the FDNY in Manhattan.  Jake is a dedicated husband and father and has a strong Christian faith but Jamie has been questioning her faith since her parent's death when she was 18.

 

Eric and Laura Michaels live in Los Angeles with their seven year old son, Josh.  Eric and Laura have known each other since Laura was in high school.  Eric is almost a partner in his firm and works lots of hours at the office and away on business.  Josh barely knows his father since he has missed almost everything of importance in his life.  Laura is lonely and misses her husband and is willing to do anything to get their relationship back.

 

On 9/11, Eric meets Jake in a hallway as he is trying to leave the south tower of the World Trade Center before the builidings come down.  Their lives change forever.  Will they survive?  Is God listening to their prayers?

 

This was a sad and touching story about how personal lives were affected by the September 11th attacks on the United States.  With a strange turn of events, that you will have to read to discover, several people will find God and change their lives.

 

I really enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to reviewing Beyond Tuesday Morning, the second book in the 9/11 series by Karen Kingsbury next.