September is WIP Wrestle, so I’ll be tackling all my works in progress. Admittedly, I have done a fairly good job since the last time I wrestled with them so my sticks are fairly empty. I have more “want to starts” than I have actually in process.

Currently on my sticks:

• Amigurimi animals for Boo-crochet
• Plushie-intarsia knit
• Jellybean socks-two at a time toe up

Once I finish those, I’ll tackle my holiday crafting. In theory I have plenty of time between now and my tentative completion date to complete the following:

• For Boo
  Boo’s animals
  clothes
• Top secret gift knittingx2
• Boo’s Secret Elf gift
• My Secret Elf gift
  Sewing project
  Spinning/Knitting project
• For me
homespun sweater
2 pairs of socks

If my hands still work after that list, I also would like to complete:

• Purse
• tennis ball frog
• Spinning, lots and lots of spinning

Every year over the third weekend in August, there is a fiber festival in Allegan, MI. I’ve wanted to go the last year or two, but it competed with Buckley Old Engine Show. I suggested the compromise of Buckley on Thursday/Friday and the Fiber Festival on Sat. but this year we decided to go to the Fiber Festival on Sun. It was less busy than it would have been on Say. and we had Boo with us so it made for a relaxing day instead of frustrating. I had a lot of fun petting all the fiber and drooling over all the tools. I found it interesting that some of the booths were yarn shops that packed up and came for the weekend while others are small independent dyers/spinners. We saw sheep, alpaca and a few other animals.

I tended to spend more time looking at fiber than anything, I had a list and a budget. I’m happy to say I didn’t over spend and found 60-70% of my list. Some of the things I purchased were for a swap I participated in and I forgot to take pictures before I mailed it off. I bought two things of sock yarn and a bit of fiber that I kept.
Next year I may have to save up a bit more so that I can have a bigger list of wants.

A few months ago I bought some of those boxed biter biscuits for Boo because he had such a difficult time with his teeth. They were a bust, he had it less than 3 minutes before he bit through it and had a huge chunk in his mouth. He didn’t have enough teeth to finish it off, so I had to fish it out and get rid of it. Fast-forward to today when I think, the “interwebs” must have a recipe for me. I looked at several, but didn’t have ingredients for all of them, so I tried the one I found here. A nice healthy option, I made mine with 100% whole wheat, freshly ground by my brother-in-law and strawberry puree because I didn’t have any interesting extract flavors I felt comfortable using. I baked them for a while, so that they would be extra crunchy, just shy of burning them. After 25 minutes, he’s still gnawing on it without breaking it. He wouldn’t even let me have it to change him, I did supervise closely though, to make sure he didn’t choke. And best of all, these aren’t sticky like the store bought ones, so he’s got a few breadcrumbs hanging around but not gross sticky everywhere.

The diapers are officially finished. Here and some of them in his drawer and some hanging on the line in the basement. Hopefully we’ll be able to hang them outside this summer. I still have bunches of fabric left, but I think I will save that in case we wear through any of them. I’ve had to do a quick repair or two, quality control was more interested in napping on the fabric than in inspecting the workmanship.

Here are pictures of the cards I made several days ago for the swap. I am not sure when I will receive the swap cards, but I’ll try to post them as a record of what I received before they are used.

Here is my new batch of baby thank you cards for Boo’s gifts. It’s a cross between what I did for the swap and the cute baby carriage. I like the carriage cards, but they use up a lot of card stock, either entire sheets of 8.5×11 or odd left chunks of 12×12. The odd bits are fine, but I’m not sure how or when I’ll use them and I’d rather not have a huge pile of tiny varying sized scraps. I’m all about efficiency, so I’ve started making the cards 4×8, so from a 12×12 I’ll only have one small square left. From that square I’ll make parts for the baby carriages so no extra waste from this process. I also think I’m going to reduce the number of layers. The card stock I just bought for the swap was on the thick side. Stay-tuned for updates. I have 30 cards to make so I can finish up the current batch of books and clothes. Boo will be richly blessed in just knowing all these people.

While I understand I will need to use disposable diapers on rare occasions, I am hoping to use cloth the majority of the time. So, I’ve been checking prices for premade cloth diapers and it’s not pretty, so it occurred to me that I might be able to make some. Here’s my list of patterns on the “interwebs” so far:

http://diaperfabric.com/

http://diaperpages.com/pockets.php

http://www.diapersewing.com/

http://fernandfaerie.com/sewing_fitteds.html

http://goodnessgraciousdiaper.wordpress.com/

http://handmadebyrita.blogspot.com/

http://mayna.livejournal.com/198548.html

http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/clothdiapers.htm – suggests using Wal-Mart flannel

http://thepeacefulpeacock.wordpress.com/2008/08/06/tutorial-make-your-own-cloth-diapers-part-1/

http://thepeacefulpeacock.wordpress.com/2008/08/10/tutorial-making-your-own-cloth-diapers-part-2/

http://thepeacefulpeacock.wordpress.com/2008/08/10/tutorial-making-your-own-cloth-diapers-part-3/

http://verybaby.com/

http://webpages.charter.net/rhamley/diapers/diapertext1.htm

Diaper making supplies:

http://wahmsupply.com/shop/

I have ordered from here and am pleased so far.

http://www.celticclothswholesale.com/

http://www.clothplanet.com/cloth-diaper-pattern.html

http://directory.diaperjungle.com/directory/index.php?id=15

http://www.sewingclothdiapers.com/sewing-resources.html

Pre-made diaper sets for sale:

http://www.angelwraps.com/

There will be visitation/viewing at Mohnke Funeral Home in Big Rapids on Sunday, December 7 from 2PM-4PM and 6PM-8PM. The funeral will be Monday, December 8 at 11AM at St. Paul Lutheran in Reed City. There will be a short committal service and fellowship meal to follow at the church.

Obituary

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Reed City Food Pantry (donations may be mail to St Paul Lutheran) or G.T. Norman Elementary School/LIFT. The LIFT is a literacy program that Tom and Linda participated in together once a week in the Reed City school.

Funeral home directions
128 S Warren Ave
Big Rapids, MI 49307
(231) 796-8628

St. Paul Lutheran Directions
22275 4 Mile Rd
Reed City, MI
(231) 832-9541

GT Norman Elementary
338 W Lincoln Ave
Reed City, MI 49677
(231) 832-5548

Big Rapids – Thomas L. Proefrock, 64, of Grant Township, passed away Thursday, December 4, 2008, at Spectrum Health Butterworth in Grand Rapids.

He was born September 2, 1944, in Detroit, the son of Theodore and Edna (Knauf) Proefrock. As a child, Tom moved with his family to the Reed City area, and graduated from Leroy High School in 1962.

Following graduation, he joined the US Air Force, and served as an airplane mechanic stationed in Dover, Delaware until his honorable discharge in 1966.

On April 14, 1973, Tom married Linda Harrison of Paris, and they have made their home in Grant Township. For nearly 20 years, they owned and operated Gone to the Birds Farm, specializing in raising Bobwhite Quail. Tom drove bus for MOISD, and also drove athletic teams for Ferris State University. He also drove truck for several local companies.

Tom was a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Reed City, where he was confirmed. He enjoyed his AA Fellowship, was active with Therapy Dogs International with his Golden Retrievers KDB and Molly, and was formerly Scoutmaster of Reed City Area Troop #70. He also actively participated in the LIFT Program, reading to children at G. T. Norman Elementary School in Reed City. Tom was “Dad first”, and looked forward to the annual trips to Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Northern Minnesota with his family. He loved shooting sports, and built his own skeet and trap range on the family farm in Ashton.

Surviving are his wife Linda; 5 children; Melissa (James) Barns of Ft. Leonard Wood, MO, Jamie Proefrock, Jeff (Jeanne) Proefrock of Muskegon, Jason (Debra) Proefrock of Hersey, and Josh Proefrock and his fiancé Julie Feutz of Paris; his mother-in-law Audrey Harrison of Paris; and his half brother Philip Parker of Battle Creek.

Funeral services will be 11:00 a.m., Monday, December 8, 2008, at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Reed City, with Rev. Dawn Pooley officiating. Burial will follow in the Ashton Cemetery. Tom’s family will greet friends at the Mohnke Funeral Home in Big Rapids on Sunday, December 7, 2008 from 2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m., and after 10:00 a.m. on Monday at the church.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made for the Reed City Food Pantry or the L.I.F.T. Reading Program at G.T. Norman Elementary School, with envelopes available at the funeral home.

While many recent events in the USA cause me great concern, I still have plenty of things for which I am thankful. I have wonderful a family, I have friends, my husband has a good job, I can afford to have three kitties and a doggie who help to pass the time, I have life and much more. I hope you have taken time some time this year to reflect on the people in your life for whom you are thankful.