The Hero of the Hoop

Eklutna Lake March 2016

Sadly, for you basketball enthusiasts (which we are), this blog is not about a round ball, a net, and the three-point-buzzer-winning shot.  It's about a hoop of a different sport -- marathon cross-stitching! Winters here can be long...even longer when there is no snow to play in and only muck to greet you each day.  Our newspaper columnists have been bemoaning the embarrassment of making national news because we had to "borrow" snow from the Interior of our beautiful state to make ago of the ceremonial Iditarod start this past weekend.  We had to do the same thing last year.  And realistically, how do you "borrow" snow?  It isn't likely that we'll repay it in future years.  Right?

Youth Fishing Derby at Finger Lake Feb 2016
No Snow...but Ice for Days!

It was sooo cold,
but that didn't stop 1000+ children from fishing!

But I digress.  Needless to say, with muckiness outside and having played board and card games ad nauseum, I've rekindled an old hobby.  I'm excited to report that as a novice crochet bandit, I've been able to "master" several simple crochet stitches and designs -- completing my first scalloped-edge baby blanket and a team-themed birthday or Christmas gift.  Many thanks to my mother (an original creator of preemie baby beanies), my grandmother (who helped me master double crochet at the age of 11), and You Tube for step-by-step video instructions for V-stitches, borders and edgings.

First Scalloped Baby Blanket

Go Hokies!

With new "crafty" confidence, I decided to dig up some old thread and Aida cloth for a reunion.  I loved cross-stitching when I was much younger, and haven't done it for nearly twenty years. With six women in our church pregnant, and one who just gave birth to twins, I was trying to keep my gift giving options versatile.

But can I just tell you that those little x's have gotten really little?  And so in true 40-something, pre-menopausal fashion, I finally broke down (literally crying in the aisle at Walmart) and bought "reading" glasses to aid and abet my efforts.  I've needed them for awhile, and starting an old hobby anew provided a perfect excuse for the purchase.  I really hadn't expected to continue with it for very long, but now I'm involved in this project, and I'd like to see it through to completion.  Glasses, however, were not the only thing I needed to continue the work.  Thankfully, the crocheting, blogging, and other projects at home have strengthened my hand muscles; but holding the Aida cloth for extended periods of time without a cross-stitch hoop was beginning to take its toll. This aging body process is definitely taking some getting used to (particularly when it is accompanied by outbursts of crying for no apparent reason).  For those of you young 20-30 somethings, aging "gracefully" is a choice!

Some days I choose well...other days I choose...w-e-l-l...

Thank the Lord I have an understanding husband who is helping me navigate these changing times. If the flirty winks while I have my reading glasses on weren't enough, he's gentle and kind enough to rub the soreness from my left hand after an epic cross-stitching session where Aida and I are duking it out for bragging rights.  But the real coup de gras of the week occurred after he and Ethan had been having a "guys' day out."  You know what I'm talking about -- a day spent basking in the glow of all things "manly."  Their guys' days typically include visits to Bass Pro, Cabelas, Sportsman's Warehouse, a local gun store, shopping for historic artifacts, and eating meat of some sort.  Did I mention fru-fru coffee?  Oh, wait...I wasn't supposed to tell that part!

While they were basking in the glow of manliness, I was blessed to be having a "girlie" day with Maddie.  I didn't grow up with young ladies, and you all know that I am surrounded by testosterone in my home.  As a result, my days with her are a special treat, and she is patient with my learning curve. I've learned to r-e-l-a-x in a store, taking time to look and enjoy (and maybe even try on a thing or two just for kicks and giggles).  Of course I have done those things before, but usually I have been spending some coveted "alone" time.  It's so much different when you've got another female enjoying the day with you!  After a relaxing trip to Walmart, (there is such a thing because our Walmart is hardly ever super busy) and a chatty-Kathy lunch at Krazy Moose Subs (one of our faves), my girl's day was complete.  I even splurged, finally raising the truce flag to Aida, buying a cross-stitch hoop for myself.

And then...wouldn't you know it? That manly man I married -- the one who fishes, hunts, and grunts -- met me at the door when I got home so we could swap stories of the day.  As he helped me carry in my "bounty," he burst into laughter.  Then, in what I consider that "final stroke of mercy," he ever so tenderly pulled a wooden cross-stitch hoop from its hiding place -- the hoop he and Ethan had purposefully and carefully chosen from a CRAFT store during guys' day out!

Two Hoops Joining Hearts

With him by my side, I may do this aging thing gracefully after all.

Eklutna Lake March 2016

"...when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not;
until I have showed thy strength unto this generation,
and thy power to every one that is to come."
Psalm 71:18