Squirrel Picnic

Handmade with Love and Stuff


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A Ripper Aussie New Year’s Party

Each year, Mayor Snack Frog hosts a New Year’s Eve party at his pad and invites all his friends from the picnic and beyond, including you! This year, special guests flew all the way from Australia to attend. These delightful amigurumi characters by Sharon Pridmore of gentlestitches.com included a bushy-tailed possum, 3 foxes, a crocodile, dogs, and zombie bunnies. Australia is filled with dangerous creatures, so Sharon sent along some Easter brown snakes and a red-backed spider as well, all of which we found to be very well-behaved despite their reputation.  You can find patterns for Sharon’s crochet creations on her website or Ravelry. We were also very excited to see that she sent along MEAP2, which she made with my cuddly robot crochet pattern, so MEAP had a girlfriend to dance with all night.

We hope you enjoy this very amateur stop-motion animation, and we wish you plenty to smile about in 2015!

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Are you ready for the festivities?

Mayor Snack Frog's Welcome

Welcome to the party! Make yourself at home.

Happy New Year! I’ll be ringing in the new year with the Squirrel Picnic gang and special guest amigurumis from Australia for as long as I can keep my eyes open. I’m super tired after a very difficult work week, so I probably won’t make it to midnight. In fact, I might just pass my phone over to Mayor Snack Frog now to take photos for you. He’ll be posting to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram throughout the evening. You won’t want to miss it. The Aussies from gentlestitches.com are sure to show us a ripper good time!

Then don’t forget to stop by the picnic tomorrow for a special (and truly amateur) film documenting the night. Have a great time and see you in the new year!


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You’re Invited to Mayor Snack Frog’s New Year’s Eve Party

Hi there, Friend! It’s me, Mayor Snack Frog.

You are cordially invited to join us for a fatimal New Year’s Eve party at my home on December 31. We’ll have appetizers, beverages, and a cotton candy machine! Dinner will be served at 7:30 followed by dancing on the tables and a spirited game of Twister. And of course there will be plenty of cheering and smooching at midnight.

New Year's Eve Invitation from Squirrel PicnicThis year we welcome some special guests all the way from Australia! Sharon from Gentlestitches was kind enough to finance their flight across the Pacific. Thank you, Sharon! A few members of the bunch wanted to join me in this invitation. It’s my pleasure to introduce Croc, Busty the bush-tailed possum, and Argyle the fox. They make up just a quarter of the troupe and wanted to say hi to you on behalf of all of them. They’ve been practicing their moves to teach us all how to do the Aussie Bush Dance.

So join us on Instagram and Twitter on New Year’s Eve to see all the fun as it happens. I’ll share these and photos of our party on the 1st, after I’ve properly woken, located my camera, and gotten my head on straight.

Still not sure if you’d fit in at a fatimal party? Check out the video from last year. Everyone has a good time. But even if we don’t see you, we wish you a happy and healthy new year!

Sincerely,

Mayor Snack Frog
for Squirrel Picnic


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Tina Ballerina Bear Crochet Pattern

Tina Ballerina Bear Crochet Pattern by Squirrel PicnicTina Ballerina Bear is an expert at having fun. She’ll even show you how when you crochet her with this free pattern.

Tina’s just one of the characters here at Squirrel Picnic, but she is by far the most outrageously fun-loving of the bunch. She loves karaoke, pillow fights, food fights, tickle fights, water-balloon fights, and limbo. But most importantly, she loves to dance… all the time. In fact, she was dancing right before I took this photo of her. That’s why she has that startled “caught in the act” look on her face.

She’s also a bit of a party girl. You know anyone who wears a tutu year-round brings the party with them wherever they go. She’s ready to celebrate anything and everything. She once threw a party just to celebrate the fact that she had cleaned the dishes.

Her enthusiasm and excitement are contagious. She inspires me to let loose now and then and to fully enjoy every opportunity that comes my way, big or small. So if you have something to celebrate, don’t hold back. Get out your tutu and live it up!

Tina Ballerina Bear Crochet Pattern

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Roly-Poly Rosa Robin Crochet Pattern

Crochet Rosa Robin Pattern from Squirrel PicnicWe had one of our customary spring snowfalls this past week in Colorado. It melted quickly, leaving behind greener grass, which the robins enjoy plucking through in their search for worms. I love to watch them hop about. There’s something very comforting about seeing the robins return. Perhaps it means that the snows have finally passed and we can look forward to warmer weather.

I want to share a favorite poem of mine with you, written by Louisa May Alcott when she was just 8 years old. Its welcoming of spring and the robin is so dear. I hope you enjoy it too.

To the First Robin

Welcome, welcome, little stranger,
Fear no harm, and fear no danger;
We are glad to see you here,
For you sing “Sweet Spring is near.”

Now the white snow melts away;
Now the flowers blossom gay:
Come dear bird and build your nest,
For we love our robin best.

Celebrate spring with a robin of your own. Roly-Poly Rosa Robin is a dear little one with her charming expression and a plump belly (full of worms, I imagine). This easy crochet fatimal pattern will whip up quickly and delight the bird lover in your life.

Roly-Poly Rosa Robin Crochet Pattern

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