Two Neat Ripple afghans see a finish

I look forward to Thanksgiving break every year, and especially so this year.  Without a single vacation break since school started, this was a long-in-coming, and much needed break. 

The quilting area remains mostly untouched, but my crochet yarn and hooks remain tucked away in the corner of the living room.  Sorta.  Last weekend, I set out to clean out and organize the small hallway attached to the living room, and then set out determined to finish a couple of projects that have been percolating for YEARS!!!

12 Interlocking ripples saw a quick finish once I started.  After many Hallmark movies, Disney's Togo and the Divergent Series, the final rows were added.  The Neat Ripple pattern is truly my favorite goto pattern for easy, mindless crocheting.

Another project that was started in recent years was created using the Comfy Cotton Blend yarns purchased on a whim a few years back.  I looked back on my FB page to get an idea when these were purchased, but ... nothing was found.  *shrug*

Both afghans are approx. 52" x 68" -- perfect for a throw size for a couch, recliner or glider rocker.
 

RSC14 and yarn selection for Mystery CAL [Crochet]

Much of this Saturday morning was spent relaxing with a coffee cup in my hand... HOME!  

Eventually, I wandered downstairs and played around with some sashing ideas for my 2014 Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks.  It was enjoyable to simply...... RELAX with no pressure of time.

I have a new iron on my board;  a Black-n-Decker Classic.  My last one simply peetered out and wasn't getting hot anymore.  So far, this one is.......'eh.'  The holes on the bottom catch the edges of the fabric when I'm pressing smaller units :\.  But I chose this one over the completely 'dry' one (which had NO holes) because this had an auto shut-off.  Although, I'm rethinking whether I really need that feature.  It'd be nice to have a nice, flat iron with NO holes.  Something to think about next time.

I purchased my yarn for the Crochet Crowd (via Yarnspirations) mystery crochet along.  The plum showed up quite bold with the flash;  it's a bit darker than what seems present in the picture.  I was sadly disappointed in the selection of Caron Simply Soft at our local Walmart.  It would seem that  they've dropped quite a few of their formerly stocked colors :(  My original color-palette hope....

And I found that Hancock Fabrics has a sale on Simply Soft right now, but.....  **shrug**.... I just can't bring myself to pushing that "Submit Order" button.  ;) ((even though I have a gift certificate from my Mommie for HF)).  Frugal much???

In the meantime, I'm making progress on the newest ripple afghan:  the 12 Interlocking Ripples (Attic24's Neat Ripple pattern).

Scrappy Random Ripple [Crochet]

Scrappy Random Ripple ~(54" x 65")

I've had some extra time on my hands at home this week due to two of the girls not feeling well :( 

:(  There really isn't a greater helpless feeling than that feeling when you want to wave a magic wand to make them feel better.  But.... that magic wand simply doesn't exist.

Trying to keep my anxiety at bay, I kept busy by putting more rows onto the Random Scrappy Ripple (pattern:  Neat Ripple by Lucy at Attic24).    

Anxiety, you ask?  Gah.  Yup!

I really didn't mind staying home Wednesday with Cassie;  it was an easy day to write up sub plans for;  most classes were in need of a work/practice day after learning a new skill or two on Monday/Tuesday.
I was back at work Thursday..... until I received a phonecall from the school nurse that Candace was fading fast (with a 101 fever).  So, I scrambled some quick notes together for the rest of the afternoon;  scrounged up a sub to cover my afternoon classes, and was heading home.
It's a good thing I stopped in the highschool office before I left though to check out the substitute situation for Friday -- this was a 'just in case' move, per Nurse Kelly's request of keeping Candace at home if her fever didn't break.
Holy Moly!  All five of my 'go-to' substitutes were already scheduled for the day.  But... our secretary (with some input from our Principal) worked her magic and fanagled the substitute schedule.

Planning for a substitute isn't the easiest.  And my 6th period class is of my biggest concern right now.  I wasn't there on Wednesday.  I was at least able to finish up their class period on Thursday.  But....if I were to be gone Friday---what to do with them?  I actually allowed them to give me some input on the game plan.

BECAUSE---I also have an afternoon mtg on Monday; therefore, I won't be with them.  And then again next Wednesday, I'm out with an all-day meeting.  Blah!  Thursday marks the end of the semester, so... it just is escalating a little bit into...."ummm, well... what to do?  What to do?"

So, sure enough....Candace spiked 102 Friday morning.  It's a good thing I spent 3 hours on Thursday afternoon planning notes and videos for my classes.  I forwarded them along to the school secretary to be printed out for my sub.  I updated the websites for each class.  I wrote up a dozen or-so emails to students who were scheduling times with me to reassess some skills.  All but one responded back to me by lunch time;  everyone was able to be flexible and reschedule to Monday before or after school.  I'll tell ya, technology SURE has its advantages!!!

Anyway---so yeah.  I was feeling anxious Friday (yesterday).  It's kinda cumulative of Candace reallllly not feeling well... and me being out of my classroom... and the guilt that comes with being out of my classroom.

**shrug**

Just sharing a little insight into the mind of me as a teacher...

So, anyway.  Once I was able to focus on the crocheting, the anxiety slowly subsided.  Crazy enough, it never really went away.  BUT, I reached a point in the Scrappy Random Ripple where I felt...."It's done."

This afghan was started at the end of November after I attempted to tidy up my living room area of yarn mess.  I had leftovers from other projects scattered around, and I had also purchased some scraps from a local thrift shop.  They seemed like they would play nicely together.

I snipped a small piece from each ball and placed the snippets in a little container.  A die was also placed in the container.  The plan:  I would have one of the girls choose a piece of yarn blindly from the container, and then have her roll the die.  The afghan would grow by the number of rows shown on the die, using the color selected.    Completely random :)

And, of course, with yarn still scattered around (albeit, a bit more organized that in November), it's a perfect idea to start aNOTHER ripple!   ((I realllly do love this pattern!!!!!!!!)