Wikipedia says:
A hobby is an activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure or relaxation, typically done during one's leisure time.
A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse (which was sometimes called a "Hobby"). From this came the expression "to ride one's hobby-horse", meaning "to follow a favorite pastime", and in turn, hobby in the modern sense of recreation
Hobbies are practiced for interest and enjoyment, rather than financial reward. Examples include collecting, creative and artistic pursuits, making, tinkering, sports and adult education. Engaging in a hobby can lead to acquiring substantial skill, knowledge and experience. However, personal fulfillment is the aim.
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Since my teenage years, I’ve tried my hand at numerous hobbies, some have held my interest more than others and for some, I find my skills are completely lacking. To name a few…gardening, jewelry design, gourmet cooking, scrapbooking, cake decorating, photography, writing, sewing, drawing, playing the piano and guitar, back-stage theater production, and the list goes on. That being said, I’m back on the horse again…this time revisiting my scrapbooking days and I've decided to pick up a crochet needle to work on a few special projects. My grandmothers on both sides of the family, had great knitting and crocheting skills, mine are certainly very basic at best. At this time of year, when we spend a bit more time indoors (yes even in Florida there are cool damp days we don’t want to be outside), I’ll pull out my long buried containers of materials and get lost in the world yarn, paper punches and glue sticks.
My father's mother started a great tradition in our family, she hand knitted Christmas stockings as each grandchild was born (because I married very young, Roger is also the proud owner of one of my grandmother's hand knitted stockings).
I'd be hard pressed to count how many of these my Grandmother Joseph knit over the years
My Grandmother Grado was amazing with a crochet hook in her hand, and my Great Grandmother also created many wonderful pieces over the years
My mother then carried on the tradition when her grandchildren came along. I've completely dropped the ball when I realized I should have picked up where my mother left off....I'll be a bit late to include Taryn, the newest member of our family. Although I've found a crochet pattern for a Christmas stocking (knitting is not something I'm prepared to teach myself at this point)…I'm pretty sure it won't be done for this year. I have to admit, it was a lot of fun heading to Michaels on Saturday, with my 40% off coupon, to search for my supplies. I've also been known to whip up a blanket or two....more than 30 years ago, I made one for both Stacey and Brian when they were babies. I completed my last and biggest crochet project when Brian was a freshman in college, I made him a large blanket for his dorm room, working on it a little each day as I commuted on the train between Old Saybrook and New Haven.
In my early baby blanket making days...that tummy did tend to get in the way
Stacey sleeping through her first trip to Switzerland at the ripe old age of 2 months old, wrapped up in the blanket I made
When we were first married, my Mother made the afghan pictured here
Although I've tried my hand at sewing since my 4-H days, my mother was very clever with a pattern and made me dresses, coats and even made pajamas for the boys one year for Christmas. I remember when the button-hole maker and the snap maker were a pretty hot commodity in our house.
My Mother had sewn this green Christmas dress, that was eventually passed down to Justine
Additionally, I’ve loved scrapbooking for years, but moved away from it when digital photography took over my world. I still have all the “stuff” that goes along with cutting, pasting, stamping and embellishing photographs, so it’s easy to drag it all out if the spirit moves me. While on the ship in November for my solo cruise, I noted that there was a scheduled scrapbooking meeting in the card room very close to my cabin and I popped in for a quick peak. I’d seen this listed on several daily activity calendars in the past, and had never been curious enough to participate. Years ago, a dear friend of mine tried to convince me to take a 7 day scrapbooking cruise….umm, I like to do it…but not THAT much!!! I was under the impression that passengers actually toted all of their “stuff” on the ship to scrapbook during these gatherings. I have enough luggage, thank you very much…the idea of bringing my roll-a-long scrapbooking bag (yes I actually have one of those), just seemed ridiculous.
What the finished product should look like for the 1st of the kits..Roger began this one....
On the 2nd kit, I started the punching out and gluing process...the rest to be done at home
How silly and presumptuous of me, I was missing out on all the complimentary packages of scrapbooking goodies the cruise line distributes to passengers…and now I attend every one of them if the timing is right. It’s usually on a sea day, so Roger decided to come along and he started punching out paper and gluing right along side of me. An interesting sight to see for sure!
Yes, that is the XXL version of a scrap booking tote bag--I can pretty much guarantee it will never sail the high seas
A few scrap book pages...
So, if you noticed that my writing has been a bit distracted lately, and not nearly as wordy (there are a few who appreciate this), please understand that other projects have taken some of my attention away each evening. Too many hobbies, not enough time! So when the freezing winter temps keep you indoors for extended periods of time…remember….it’s really never too late to jump back on that horse!
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