March is so many things....

March is:  

 

MS Awareness month  

March has St. Patrick's Day

March is my Dad's birthday

Watch for my MS Awareness post to come soon!

But in this post I have decided to share some shamrocks with you for St. Patrick's Day so you have time to crochet some.

My mom's family came from Ireland 4 generations ago and 5 McQuiston brothers settled in Michigan...that's as far back in my family history that I can trace.

On my Pinterest you can find some St. Patrick's Day ideas.

I crocheted some shamrocks this month for family and Listia using patterns and/or my own creation but I am terrible about not keeping track of which patterns I used or directions for my own.  

I keep vowing I will do better but it always seems that I have too much to do with so little time.  Do you know that time just flies by for senior citizens?  Here's an article, 

 that supports what I feel.  Why Time Goes Faster as You Get Older

And here are some of the shamrocks that I made as time just seemed to fly by.

Do you have any to share?

January is a great month to crochet 

snowflakes



And some beautiful snowflake crochet 

charts to help us do that.


http://szydelkomania.blogspot.com/search/label/Gwiazdki%20choinkowe


Heritage Heart Craft answers the 


question, "Ever wonder why carefully 


handcrafted items cost so much?"


You can find the answer here.




Did the Christmas holiday find you crocheting or knitting more than you are used to? To alleviate some of the pain you may have had 
Knitting Daily may have some help for you~

check it out  
here.

I made one of my grand-puppies a sweater for the cold weather.  I wish I would have remembered to take a pic of it on Carrie.

Here are some doll clothes that were under the tree for  my 3 granddaughters.  I made them without a pattern but haven't wrote any notes.  Some are in my head still so maybe I can write them down.  My problem now is that all the dolls went home with the girls so I don't have a model to try them on.  

MS NO LONGER KICKING MY BUTT!!

That is if I keep feeling the way I do!

I am on a new drug called Aubagio and I am hoping I continue feeling the way I do lately.  And no more shots!!

These are pics of my sister and me and the campground that we camp at quite often.  I have always wanted to walk around the lake but for the fear I wouldn't make it and someone would have to  help me the rest of the way I never tried it for the 4 years we have camped here.  My scooter wouldn't go on the hiking trail because of the narrowness of the path so I would just watch others walk around and come back smiling and laughing from their experience.  And there is another lake hidden from view by a large hill that leads up to it.  

But!!  somehow because I was feeling so good lately I tried and succeeded!  I was so happy and proud of myself.  Thanks to my sister and a friend that dared to go with me and help if needed.

My sister Beth and I across the lake from our campsite

Another pic of the campground from across the lake!  Pics I had never been able to take before because I tired so easily from the MS.  Take that you stupid disease!

I forgot to take a pic of the other lake but there will be other camping trips and other walks around the lake and other walks up the steep hill to take pics next time!

And back to one of my favorite topics!  No, it isn't grandkids or family it is just one of my fav topics.
Crochet!
In our camper I use grocery bags for the small waste basket we use in our kitchen/dining/living area so with that hint 
guess what I made.

Ta Da!

If you guessed a holder for the grocery bags you are right!

I used a tissue box for the shape.  I didn't write a pattern but all I did was make a chain the length of the bottom of the box and then sc until the rectangle is the size of the bottom of the box.  Break off and with another color start sc around the entire rectangle without adding any stitches.  From there I just changed colors when I felt like it and did stitches that I wanted to do at that point and continued in the round(actually rectangle) until the sides were high enough to reach the top of the box.  Place the box inside the "box" Now the tricky part I crocheted back and forth for the top.  I connected the stitches to the short side of the rectangle to anchor the stitches to form a rectangle for the top of the box.  When I got to the middle row of the top I got to within 4 stitches of the center and chained 8.  Then continued by skipping 8 stitches and crocheting in the last stitches in that row.  Next row I crocheted across the row in all the stitches and chains.  You now have an opening to push the bags into and to pull them out.  Continue crocheting back and forth until you get to the other long side of the box.  I then fastened off but kept a long strand of yarn to sew the top to the long edge of the box.

I think if I made another one I would make a rectangle for the top instead of crocheting back and forth because it was kind of difficult to hold the box and crochet along the top.  But if you do it this way remember to do the chain 8 and skip 8 stitches in the center for a hole to put and take out the plastic bags. Place the tissue box into the box you crocheted.   Then sew the rectangle to the top of the box cover.

March is MS Awareness Month!

Catina is a friend of mine.  We met at the MS Self-help Group that I have been lucky enough to belong to and serve as the leader for about the past 10 years.  She is our youngest member.  I now struggle with that last sentence.

You see Catina is now in a "nursing home".  She has been there for about 3 years and no longer is able to walk, talk, eat (except through a permanent tube in her stomach). So, she doesn't attend our meeting but I try to keep her in other's thoughts too so she is not forgotten.  I have come to love Catina more and more!  She was always our most positive member.  She never complained about what life had dealt her at such a young age.  

When Catina first joined our group she was one of the most positive person I have ever known!  Always had a smile and never a bad word to say about anyone or anything!  

Somehow I know she still has a very positive attitude but it is impossible for her to convey that attitude trapped within her body like it is.  

So, for people like Catina I ask you to donate when asked by family or friends.  Somewhere, around one of these corners, there is a cure but research is not cheap!

Thanks for listening!  And if you don't know anyone walking, riding, hanging out in the mud to raise money I would love to take your money. ;-)

This is my my participant page where you can donate  for a cure for Multiple Sclerosis.  thanks

March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month

March is MS Awareness Month

And I will be adding some info on here real soon but in the meantime if you want to read some information from a very reliable source I recommend going to National MS home page

 You may go to my WalkMS page and donate or sign up for an MS Walk!  Thank you!

And also March is Crochet Month!

I found the free pattern for these two!  It is Alice and the White Rabbit
 here at Crochet Kitten's blog.

I designed the skirt for Miss Victoria but the blouse comes from  a  free pattern at Crochetville

Another paying it forward gift to be mailed out.

My friend, Beth, and the first crochet item she ever crocheted.  She is now learning to do different stitches and how to read patterns.

And this is my living room this morning.  Crochet has taken it over!!  And the newspapers are piling up while I just crochet away!!  What have you been doing to start March is Crochet month?

Afghan in progress

this tangled looking "mess" is actually a couple scarves-
the long thin kind that are more for styling than for warmth!

This has not been on my hook, but it will be!

Mikey, Crochet Crowd, has challenged us to an Easter tree challenge using this Free pattern for our tree that we will decorate if we plan to join in. Diva Dan has decorated one of their trees for Easter and here are some Christmas trees pics from fans when they did the Christmas tree challenge.

Just another rainy Monday

Getting myself psyched for the WalkMS event this Saturday!  Last year it was cold and rainy and I swore I wouldn't "walk" this year if it was raining.  The reason I put walk in parenthesis is because I only walk part of the 3 miles and scooter the rest.  I can't imagine not being out there with our team, the ShiaWalkers, tho whether it is rain or shine.  I am just really hoping for no rain and not too hot.

This is our team the first walk we did.  I had a computer crash a few months ago and just haven't taken the time  to put some of my pics on this computer and too lazy to find it on the disk right now.  This one is on my FB page so I just copied it from there.  :-)  Our numbers are dwindling each year but what we have lost in numbers we have gained in enthusiasm!  


I made a bracelet today.  I am quite happy with it and plan to make a necklace soon.  Today started out to be a necklace but I did the infamous mistake they always warn you about-I didn't put enough beads on my thread and I have never tried other ways of putting beads on except before you start crocheting.  Ah, well, it's a cute bracelet and I like the stitch.  I put it up on my Etsy, hoping to make a sale there one of these days.  I made it with one of my favorite color combinations.

  Seafoam green and light pink!  I guess this may be more of a mint green but still a great color combo.

Check it out on my Etsy here !












I need to get a couple more butterflies made for my Mom's Mother's Day gift.  I'll post pics of it when I am done.  My mom is like most mom's, doesn't matter what you get for her or make her she is happy that you remembered her.  We are having a family cook-out so that makes the day even more special.

daVinci Awards Ceremony

This is my friend and me leaving the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's daVinci Awards.  daVinci Awards website.  There were so many innovative ideas to help the handicapped become more mobile and able to do things that most of us just take for granted.  For example:  sending texts on the iPhone, walking, using the computer, fishing, swimming.  Check out their website and see the finalists and the winners!  The ones that did the inventing were the winners last night but many disabled persons will be winners for a lifetime because of people that spend their life researching and inventing items to make our life easier!  Thanks daVinci Awards for bringing them to forefront. 

As we left the awards we were handed a gift bag with a couple goodies.  Both these items are manufactured in Michigan!!  I thought it was a cute way to promote Michigan products.  And good for a snack when we got home.

Thanks Michigan Chapter of the National MS Society for letting us be your quests at this great event.