Not a Confident Crocheter

I have started crocheting a Hobbes - a stuffie for Skip. It's a free pattern on Ravelry.

There were several patterns to choose from, including a couple of knitted ones, but the instructions for this one seemed the most decipherable. I had to do some research on joining ends of rounds so as not to have a jog when changing colours. I also am quite challenged when deciding what chain to go into at the beginning of a round. However, I persevered and so far have the head and body knit. I started the tail last night. It requires 13 stripes of each colour. 

The ears will be crocheted as well as the belly and muzzle, otherwise the eyes and nose will be felt. I may embroider the nose along with the mouth. This is my first attempt at amigurumi-style crochet. It's mostly single crochet so not too taxing, stitch-wise.

I rounded up some scrap white yarn for the muzzle, belly, and tips of paws. I'm pretty slow at this. Crocheting with black yarn at night with only a floor lamp beside me is another deterrent to speed. However, I think I could have this done by the end of the weekend. 

I put the clothesline out today. I've hung out the first load of the season. With the sun and the breeze today, they should dry in a jiffy and will smell great.

While out there, I noted the daffodils actually bloomed! I thought they were goners after the snow we had last week. I did have to tie them up a bit as they were quite droopy but they put on a lovely display.

They're in a sunny spot all morning and the warmth from the brick wall encouraged them to bloom early. The daffs in the other areas of the garden have a long way to go. Tulips are up. I have a cage around the ones in the front yard to thwart marauding rabbits.

I had a real urge to do some painting last week after watching a YouTube video on how to paint daffodils. 

I was very pleased with the results. I must make time to do more of my little paintings. I got the ceramic dish for mixing my colours at a thrift shop for under $1. Having never had a formal painting lesson in my life, I've really enjoyed the step by step tutorials online. 

A couple of the jigsaw puzzles I worked on recently didn't get completed. I really don't like dark areas with no distinguishing features other than the shape of the pieces. I lack patience for that so back in their respective boxes they went and will be returned to the owners. I did, however, complete one of the $5 puzzles I bought at Giant Tiger a couple of weeks ago. It went as well as I thought it would with the door being the last element I finished. It was quite bright and had some shading so I knew it would be more enjoyable.

I know it's not hard to believe I actually have a photo folder on my laptop for puzzles.

Skip has a CT scan this afternoon; we'll have the results next week. Fingers are crossed the tumour has not grown. 

Scooter is coming for a visit on Easter Sunday. Hope you all have a lovely weekend.