The Christmas gift was not going to disappear, it was staying. A second chance at the craft of crocheting was inevitable. I could see my daughter's excitement matched the way I felt that summer at my great grandmother's house. I figured that this time around I would help my daughter succeed in making more than just a chain and a doily. We would create animals starting with a bunny!
We sat down and opened the kit. One thing in our favor was that it was a yarn kit with a larger hook. Yarn was easier to handle than thread. The instructional book said it was for beginners. It started with a five sentence paragraph on how to make a chain. I laughed, knowing that my daughter could have never figured out how to make a simple chain on her own, using only the description the book provided. I knew it would take some hands-on guiding. As I helped my daughter arrange her hands and start a chain she talked about making things for her grandparents and cousins we were going to see in a few short days for the new years.
I gave a half promising response, "Yea, maybe. We'll see how this goes."
As she practiced her first chain she said, "Ok, what's the next step? When will it start looking like the bunny?" I glanced at the first picture of what our bunny project was to look like.
Oh my!
I explained that she was just practicing for a bit and then we will start. I looked through the instructions and realized that I too needed more than what was in the book to help her along. Out came the computer and the internet for the hands-on training that went beyond my simple know-how. Step by step youtube videos came in handy and soon we were crocheting what we thought was going to be the top of the bunny's head. Only it wasn't looking like the picture.
Then we looked at a second video that gave us a little more instruction. Our stitch was looking better but still, it was not looking like the perfect half ball pictured in the book.
Hours had passed and my daughter was off doing something else while I tried to figure out what was going wrong. I didn't want to see the excitement fade so quickly so I searched the internet for better videos. After watching tons of instructions I found one that seemed to fit the bill. That day was done, but if my daughter still wanted to try this out we would start again the next day.
The next day she seemed to be even more motivated to create. The failed attempts did not deter her. So I showed her the video I found on how to make Smileys.
She almost jumped out of her skin. "Yes! That's it. We'll start more simple and make Smileys! We are not ready to make the animals, yet." After a quick scavenger hunt around the house for different colors of yarn we were at it again. My daughter also discovered that her Rainbow Loom hook was a close duplicate of the crochet hook. This time we sat side by side crocheting together.
We learned how to keep the yarn loose enough to stitch into but tight enough to keep it together. We learned the terms and what they meant. Mistakes gave each creation character. After another full day of crocheting we managed to make two Smileys to give away. We even used our failed bunny attempt as a Smiley hat!
The day before New Years Eve we were in the car for almost 6 hours. It was our goal to make at least two more so that my daughter could give two cousins, an aunt and her grandparents a Smiley. The two of us crocheted for the entire ride up. I helped her correct stitches, loosen up the yarn, tighten up miss stitches and add details. At times I had to finish up a few rounds to help get her back on track. When she felt sick from looking down I continued the project for her until she was able to start again. Our hands kept busy for the entire ride and as we pulled into my in-laws community we finished.
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