Babies on the brain

I've been wishing for babies.  Not my own... that's not going to happen short of a miracle.  I do have to cop to a little, tiny bit of baby fever now that Zoe is definitely not a baby anymore.  But I just have to conjure up the memories of sleepwalking with babies, poopy diapers and washing bottles and I'm pretty much over it in no time.  I really want do a baby to borrow, though.

My children have been very effective birth control for my sister, who has sworn off ever having kids.  (That's not really the reason, but there are times I wouldn't blame her if it was)  My older sister is out of the baby-making business.  I was the last of my friends to have kids.  So it's slim pickings around here trying to find people to spawn and satisfy my desire for baby love.

Luckily, my cousin's daughter is having a baby soon.  And a good internet pal of mine is pregnant.  So I get to at least make some baby stuff, even if I may not get any good cuddle time out of these babies.  I found out that they are having a shower for my cousin's daughter next weekend, so I was looking for something to make for a little boy.  Sara at Tangled Happy has a new sponsor, The Lovely Crow, and she has the cutest little galoshes pattern.  I was all set to buy it when she posted on facebook that she was about to release a cowboy boot pattern.  Score! 

Well, before I went to buy the pattern, I found this on Pinterest:

Source: ravelry.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

A free cowboy boot pattern.  I don't mind buying patterns, but here was a free one.  I'm all about not having to pay for stuff.  =)

I got what I paid for.  This pattern made me feel stupid.  I know I have only been crocheting a year and a half, and I'm not trying to sound conceited or anything, but I think I can hang with the pros most of the time.  I've worked advanced patterns before.  But I don't know how anyone managed to make these blasted boots.  I hate ripping out my work and starting over.  And over.  And over.  Nothing I did could make these books look like that picture up there.  I even improvised a bit here and there to try to make it work.  It just wasn't happening.  Stupid boots.

So, when I can get to a printer, I'm going with the other pattern.  Debating between the galoshes and the cowboy boots....  They're very similar and I cold probably figure out how to adapt one to make the other.  I should have just gone with that in the first place, the pictures of the finished projects on Ravelry looked better to start with, but I was willing to sacrifice a tad for a free pattern.  But not my sanity. 

By the way, The Lovely Crow has no clue who I am or what I am saying about her pattern, I'm just running my head to avoid working on those darn South Park kids.  =)