It is done!

I finished at the stroke of 10 pm after a day of stolen moments and a mad rush all evening. I woke Big Princess up from the sofa to tell her the news. I think she was too sleepy to appreciate the fullness of the moment. (I plan to try again tonight)

The journey began way back in the middle of December 2004. My boss and I had gone together at lunch to pick out yarn.

“Hey, check out this afghan crochet sampler,” I told her. I had just finished crocheting like 30 scarves to go to the orphanage in Moldova and was looking for a new project. To date, my most difficult project had been a two-colored (black & hot pink) lap blanket for Big Princess.

“Don’t buy that book. I’ve got that exact one at home you can have.”

“Sweet!”

And so it began. Sixty-three squares measuring 7” x 7”, each square a different stitch or pattern to learn, three colors to juggle. Up to this point I hadn’t learned to read instructions, or as I like to call them the “recipes”. But hey, it started off easy enough, crochet 30 single stitch, continue until it reaches 7”. That doesn’t sound hard.

Initially I thought I could slam out a square a day easy. So I plugged along, storing each square in a large ziplock bag to protect it. People would see me working and ask what I was making. I’d show them the picture of the finished blanket. I thought it was hilarious when they would see my little 7” square and ask how long I’d been working on it.

“Oh, since mid December.”

“Oh… How long do you think it will take you?”

It seemed like forever. Occasionally I’d consider putting it aside and beginning a project I knew I could whip out in a couple weeks. But I continued. Sometimes the recipe would stump me and I’d have to seek out a professional to finish the square.

I began attaching all the squares about 1 week ago and was surprised that part went so fast. You could see the finished project fairly well at this point but technically it wasn’t done. It has a pretty little trim going all the way around and I wouldn’t be happy until it was officially finished.

I had anticipated sleeping with my masterpiece about Monday or so but the edging was taking longer due to the fancy stitch. But Thursday was a day filled with stolen moments. I got up 15 minutes early in the morning. I worked all during lunch. That evening was a full out run, crocheting at top speed. “Lord, I just want to finish tonight,” I prayed.

Then at the stroke of 10 pm, I cut the yarn and weaved it back in and it was done.

I slept with it and it was marvelous!