This is a wedding gift for Cal and Mars knit by three of Cal’s aunts - myself, Jenny MissouriTrouble, and Betsey betseysen.

Cal is the younger son of our sister Jackie claredeloony, who passed away due to cancer in 2020.

Fall 2022: When Cal and Mars announced their engagement, Jenny, Betsey, and I began planning this blanket. We decided on a design of five rows, with 18 squares. Each of us chose 3 colors and knit 6 squares, using light grey for the background color.

2023 and 2024: We worked on knitting our squares.

September 2024: Cal and Mars got married!

Fall 2024: When all the squares were done, I knit the extra garter stitch at the sides of the second and fourth rows.

December 28, 2024: All squares and rows joined! I blocked the blanket by laying it flat over a sheet and lightly spritzing it with a spray bottle containing water and Soak wool wash.

Jenny finished her squares first, which in retrospect was a good thing. She died unexpectedly in April 2024.

It’s been a hard few years, but knitting these squares has brought me so much happiness, and I hope the blanket brings Cal and Mars warmth and happiness for years to come.