I needed something to keep myself occupied over the holidays. With a lot of time to fill, I pulled out the afghan/throw I started crocheting….well…a long time ago. It was put to the side when I started crocheting all the Obsession Scarves. I’ve spent an enjoyable few days plopped on the sofa in the den, watching The Bishop’s Wife and Meet Me in St. Louis and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (that movie breaks my heart, every time) and old episodes of The Rifleman and The Big Valley.

This is a variation of the ripple stitch in seemingly random colors ( but not really). It’s a scrappy throw for the den. Because it’s so big, I usually leave it on the sofa between bouts of crocheting.

Of course, my little nester had her eye on it and it wasn’t long before I saw this:

and this:

That girl sheds like crazy and everything in me wanted to move her back down to the other end of the sofa. But it was Christmas and, let’s face it, her hair is going to get on it anyway, especially if we use it in the den.

Besides, she’s awfully cute.

I’m glad Christmas is over. It was a long day, punctuated by a couple of Skype calls with Don and phone calls with my sister and dad. I got to say Merry Christmas to my mom, which I’m grateful for. Any sort of phone conversation with her nowadays is very rare and very short – she is not doing well.

I did make myself a special vegetarian holiday dinner: mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy, steamed asparagus, some Quorn (which is a chicken substitute – no meat for me), jellied cranberry slices ( I love them) and my grandmother’s Cloud Biscuits:

Ummm mmmm good.

I’m off to run a few errands as we have a winter weather watch up for this afternoon and tomorrow. Yuck. I want it to be out of here by the time I have to drive to Hartford on Friday.

Thank you for all the holiday greetings!

Happy Wednesday.