My weekends tend to be crowded and, to my mind, over full of things to do; this weekend was no exception.

The largest problem I have is finding a balance between what I want to do, and what I need to do. My house and the attendant chores of life seem unaware of any kind of calendar; they have no knowledge of the idea of a day off, let alone two of them strung together to punctuate the end of a week.

Pets also take no notice of any days off. The dog wants to be walked, the cat feels a need scratch surfaces that to my eye do not appear to be in need of scratching, both shed copious amounts of hair no matter what the day of the week. As for the house, there are dishes to be washed, trash to be taken out, and laundry continues to accumulate.

So this afternoon, when I could have been washing dishes, mopping floors, and folding laundry, I was instead watching the Carolina Ballet’s production of “Balanchine Rarities.”

One thing that was immediately clear when watching today’s performance is that the dancers’ bodies are their instruments, and as there are no million dollar contracts paid to them, they must be motivated (as I am) by an extreme love of their craft.

So the performance was wonderful, but in between the day’s to and fro and the afternoon’s entertainment, I did manage to get a bit of work done toward an item I desperately need to make my life easier.

Several weeks ago, we picked up lunch from Taco Bell and one of the items came in this bag:

I found the proportions of the bag to be perfect, but for what I did not know — at least not immediately. However, the other day when the weather was nice, no doubt a preview of the spring to come, and I did not have a coat on, I found that I had to stuff the pockets of my pants with all of the things one needs when out walking a dog.

In that moment, I realized that my life would be infinitely better/more comfortable if I made a small bag, the purpose of which would be to hold all of the things I need to take with me when walking the dog. The Crunchwrap Supreme bag immediately came to mind as being the perfect size and proportion.

So using the bag as a guide for size, this shelf liner as a guide for the color scheme and decorative elements:

and the half double crochet stitch as it was used this “crochet hook wallet” as a guide for creating the body of my dog walking purse-to-be:

I got to work. I started by making a swatch that was 20 half double crochet stitches by 10 rows:

I then placed the swatch on top of the Crunchwrap Supreme bag, and after taking some measurements, I decided on a length of 60 half double crochet stitches:

I will continue to work the body of the bag in the half double crochet stitch until it is as wide as the Crunchwrap Supreme bag. Then, after appliquéing the decorative elements, I will fold the body of the bag in half an crochet a small gusset that will serve not only as a gusset, but will also be used to join the side of the bag.

Then, when spring comes and I embark on my daily dog-walking adventures, I will be able to grab this bag and go, prepared for whatever the dog and I encounter.