Granny Squares with Family

Last Sunday, I spent the afternoon with Carol, my future mother-in-law. She was teaching me how to crochet granny squares.

I taught myself to knit in college, and my friend, Emily, taught me to crochet a couple years ago, but I had only ever made things that start at one end and you progress left to right, or end to end. I was interested in the idea of starting in the middle and spiraling outwards, determining the size of the final project as you go. And, it turns out, Carol almost only crochets granny squares - turning them into throw blankets. 

So, I went over to her house armed with my box of crochet hooks and scraps of yarn. She poured me a glass of wine from a new vineyard she just discovered and started showing me how to do granny squares. Below are the final results. Her professional looking square that she whipped out in ten minutes is on the left. My effort, achieved only after being ripped out six or seven times, is on the right. She went around hers one more time than I did, which is why mine is smaller. 

I bring this up because I fully recognize how lucky I am to get along so well with my future in-laws. There are all sorts of horror stories that I have heard about in-laws. Of course, television and movies enhance this idea, but I do know people whose relationships with in-laws range from strained to downright awful. I am extremely thankful that I do not have any of those stories to tell. 

Colin and I have been together for nearly seven years, so I have known the Davises and McCutcheons for a quite a while. They were all friendly, welcoming, and accepting from the start. Of course, it helped that I have a lot in common with both his parents, and with Carol especially - a love of musicals (which Colin does not share,) a love of reading, and a similar sense of humor. (I do not share the Davis love of sports, though I am getting better. We joke that every conversation, no matter the topic, can be turned to baseball.) 

So, as we plan our wedding for next September, I feel a little surprised as people make comments about me joining the Davis family. To me, nothing will change next September except my name. I'm already a part of the Davis family and I have been for seven years.