They say that "necessity is the mother of invention." Now that our kids outnumber my husband and me, one of the necessities in my life is some semblance of order. I can deal with toys and spills and what have you, but dirty socks in random places make me just a little bit bonkers. Especially since they end up hidden in bizarre locations and miss the laundry hamper entirely, leading to the boys never having any matching socks no matter how many times we do laundry (please tell me I'm not the only one this happens to). Since I find that my kids respond well to making cleanup fun, I took some inspiration from my Monster Toy Bag and created this cute and hungry hanging basket that we've dubbed "The Sock Monster." 

I don't think that I'll ever stop being excited about getting something in the mail. Even when you know exactly what's inside of it, there's just something about the anticipation of waiting for a package to arrive that makes it feel like an unexpected gift. (A box, for me? You shouldn't have.) And of all the things you can order, I think the best kind of delivery has to be yarn mail. So when the kit for this gorgeous clutch from We Are Knitters showed up on my porch, I couldn't wait to get started on it. A very merry unbirthday to me! 

I think we've established by now that my attention span for projects isn't always the best. So it's not uncommon for me to have more than one WIP (work in progress) going at the same time. Couple that with a teeny tiny apartment with no extra storage and you get a mess. After some late night cleaning/organizing (thank you, third trimester nesting), I decided it was high time I had a basket to hold all my projects. Something large, nice to look at, stiff enough to stand on its own but still collapsible if needed, and with handles for toting it around the apartment. I'm so glad that I decided to design my own, because I just LOVE how this basket turned out! 

Baby #3's arrival is fast approaching and that means it's time for another blanket. I mean, on the one hand, we definitely don't need any more baby blankets. We are more than set in that department. But on the other hand, I can't help but imagine #3 complaining someday that she never got her own blanket when her brothers both had handmade blankets...and the mom guilt kicks in. So another blanket it is! But as we've discussed before, I have the worst attention span when it comes to making blankets. So I wanted to come up with a new design to challenge myself. Something non-traditional looking. And I think I hit the mark with this modern geometric look. 

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and we all know what that means: candy! Which is awesome. . . except when it's not. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not opposed to sweets (cookies are one of my very favorite things, after all), but sometimes it seems like any holiday celebrated at school turns into a crazy sugar fest. So why not put my yarn stash to good use? These crocheted candies are just as festive and cute as candy without adding to the sugar mountain. Further proof that yarn is the answer to all of life's quandaries. 

It's time to come clean: I've been holding out on you. I have to confess that I've been holding onto this finished design for way too long. I was hoping to make something seriously impressive (like a blanket) with this pattern, but then everything snowballed and now it's suddenly 2019?!? Since I'm lucky to stay awake long enough to crochet a row or two of anything these days, I think it's only fair that I share this gorgeous square pattern with you all instead of making you wait for something bigger. Because this square right here is way too pretty to keep to myself anymore. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to the Stained Glass Square.