A Stoney Creek Jungle Babies design

Isn't he darling! I just love him. I stitched him up and mailed him off to take part in a crib quilt being produced by the Krafters Korner Charity Quilt Yahoo group. We are working on quilts to donate to "Grandma's House" which is a temporary home for infants, toddlers and their young mothers who have no place else to live. A very worthy cause in my opinion. Thank you Mary for bringing this need to attention.

Pine Ridge Reservation

For some time now I have wanted to write something to bring attention to this Native American Reservation. Words always fail me. I am not sure where to begin to describe what to me seems like a nearly modern day holocaust right here in America. I always thought and stupidly so that the Native Americans that are living on reservations were being well cared for by our government. I could not have been more wrong!! I knew we have poverty in our country but never ever would I dream it to be on such a scale as what these beautiful Native Americans are experiencing on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The teenage suicide rate on the res is the highest in our entire country! The average life expectancy is only to the age of 50! But you do not have to take my words alone for this information. Please follow the links and read for yourself the facts.

Native Village

Wikipedia

If you don't mind taking a few more moments of time, watch the videos on you tube and see first hand and hear the Oglala speak. Please be sure to pause my music choice player on my blog site before you click on the following links.

video 1
video 2
video 3
video 4

After learning the facts, I became compelled to do what I can to help. I am asking you that if you feel as compelled as I was to please get in touch with the "Friends of Pine Ridge Reservation and learn what you too can do to help.

Friends of Pine Ridge Reservation


Thank you,
Ann

Vintage Rose Granny Square Potholder

Happy, happy Friday! 

This week has seemed to have lasted forever. I have been rather busy over this entire past month of February and now we are into March. I wonder if it will hold true of March to come in like a lamb and exit like a lion. I hope we find ourselves in full spring by the end of the month. I am also a tad nervous about this March. The last week of March will make it a year since my sons and I nearly lost my husband from Congestive Heart failure. I am praying this this March will go far smoother. Joe seems to be doing quite well so I am feeling rather confident that we will certainly be celebrating his one year marker since being revived . I am also hoping that I will soon be finding more relief for my own health issues. I am one of the many millions that suffer from Fibromyalgia Syndrome. The doctor I saw last weekend was telling me that it is one of the least understood health conditions being experienced today. He was saying how each person experiences it differently, some mildly and others quite severely. At the moment, I am in that later category unfortunately. I have resisted taking medication for it because I was initially placed on Vioxx and we all know what happened to people on that nasty drug. It would seem though that I am reaching the point where I can no longer refuse medication and will be seeking out the best informed solution I can over the next few months. I really need to get mobile again! So anyhow, to keep from loosing my mind, lol, I keep myself busy with my needle projects. Although lately there have been times where the pain was even too much for me to do very much of that as well. Anyhow, today I want to share with you a longing fulfilled. It is this pretty little rose granny square crochet potholder. My husband and I had inherited several of these in a different color combination from my mother-in-law and I loved them. I just thought she was so cleaver! However over the years they vanished from our home. Some were lost in a basement flood that destroyed all the laundry I had in the basement ready to be washed  and others just seem to sprout legs and leave the house. We lost all but one potholder she made and I have always wanted to find a pattern and make more. Well, I got so excited a few weeks ago because someone posted the link to a website with the instructions to make the rose granny square. The pattern for this can be found here: Potholderlady It will take a few moment for the page to load the pdf file for it so please be patient. The green that I used is home dyed. I could not find a good green in the store so I just figured, hey why not use some of my white and just give it a dye bath. I really like the shade of green that I got from this. I have just enough left to make one more potholder. I hope to find the time in the next week or so to do that. In addition to making this crochet rose granny potholder, I have been busy crocheting dishcloths and I made two very large thick potholders from worsted weight yarn using another vintage crochet pattern. I just love them. They are large but wok well. And unfortunately, I have no clue where the pattern came from.

 

I hope to have more updates for you within the next few days as I have several projects that are very close to be finished and I look forward in sharing them with you.