Wildlife

Suddenly there are two donkeys living in my house.  They're almost entirely hand-sewn...Some kind of pattern is in the making, maybe. I think their names are Bertha and Rosario...they are here, voila!

A couple of weeks ago, Gilly had a visit from her friend Rocket, whom she met in agility class.  They look like cousins, and they might be, for they are both from the same Rescue.  Rocket is very smart (like Gilly).  When they play, it is a big Blur, so here they are as a sort of Still Life.

The other day, I saw something that looked like the center of a daisy on the leaves of my little maple tree.

I touched it, and it moved...it spread out til it was about 2 inches wide.  When I looked closely, it turned out to be many tiny yellow spiders.

Never would I have have touched it had I known what it was, and now that it has returned to its cozy family state I am quite inclined to leave it in peace, but what a surprise!

I'm about to start piecing my grand-son's quilt...this is a partial plan...each square will be 12" square:

Speaking of whom, here is a link to news of his dad's latest project.  My son is the guy who draws the pictures, and you'll be able to tell which one is my grandson if you watch the video!!

So on that note, I will say adieu for now...sending love, especially especially to those impacted by recent events...

Spring!

Hello everyone and happy spring!  Perhaps I'm learning to be a better wisteria pruner, as it looks like there will be many more flowers this year...

It's been very dry here so I'm working on ways to save water, remembered and hopefully improved on from our last drought.  For starters I'm saving the water that usually goes down the drain while the cold water turns to hot, and being judicious about watering the garden.

I took a vacation day at the beach, staying at Asilomar and visiting the Monterey Aquarium and especially the jellies!  Here are some very small ones that light up...

the beach:

my room...note the beautiful curtains...

I walked around Carmel, but didn't enjoy the commercialism.  The best part was this bird who visited bread baskets after the diners departed.  

He even visited my table and graciously offered me this view of his intricately overlapping feather situation whilst scanning the horizon for more profitable perches:

I've been constructing a table runner for my daughter-in-law, using methods learned from Jude...here is a view of it today, but there is a long way to go!  I'm embroidering state birds and flowers from 3 relevant states, but I just realized I only have been showing the boy birds because they are more "colorful".  This is embarrassing, being a girl bird myself and I will make more for us. Lately I was reprimanded for using the word 'girl' instead of 'woman' to refer to myself.  Hmmm, well...it's partly because the idea of being a cowgirl has always appealed.  You wouldn't say cowwoman, or cowoman...I can't even spell it so it looks right. My girlhood continues in my mind.  Anyway! here's a fuzzy picture of the table runner:

This is our state bird, the California Valley Quail (male version), that is becoming a brooch:

And lastly, Sleeping Beauty herself, resting on one of the beautiful pillows we found as recycle:

For each of you dear readers, I'm hoping that Spring is filling up your cup of wonder...xoxo, s.

Groundhog Day!

Hello everyone.  I love Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, because it's about shadows and hibernation and the coming of spring or the clinging of winter and it's not widely celebrated so you can do what you want with it!  This year I was hoping to do a little more but became engaged in a lengthy wrangling contest with my very quirky printer;  finally I managed to make a few cards and only two hibernation pillows...here is one:

And then I made a small brooch:

This is a belated report on the wondrous January full moon...the apple tree branches picked up the glow and seemed to be announcing something ...a dance at midnight perhaps...

Here is proof of progress on long term projects...a pile of squares for my grandson's quilt...soon I'll be able to start putting it together...

This is the pile of squares for a knitting project for a baby blanket to give away.  I was greatly inspired by Kaite.  I'm a very slow knitter with a LOT to learn but this is a good project when I need to have busy hands but not too much complication...

And here is my own little groundhog, Gilly, emerging from her burrow...a children's tunnel I bought at Ikea for her agility training class.  I also made her an item to jump over out of PVC pipe.  She loves learning and it keeps us both busy. 

That's all for now.  Enjoy your Groundhog Day!  If you're having a prolonged hibernation, enjoy that too.  xoxo, s.

On the twelfth day...

The last day of Christmas...Epiphany...finding the baby...taking down the decorations.  When I was growing up, the story was that if the decorations didn't come down by 12th night, the ghosts would walk. Hmmm...

Anyway here's the lamb that goes with the lion, but I can't show you the whole picture yet...it will be a surprise for later on.  Meanwhile I wish you happy discoveries, finding small things to admire...

On the seventh day...

Dear Readers...thank you so much for your visits this year...I hope you will ease peacefully and kindly from 2012 into 2013.  The peaceable lion,

Gilly, Molly (the dove), and I send you greetings of hope and love.

Here is Gilly licking the platter of 2012 clean...

Tomorrow, in just a few moments, she will officially be ONE year old! And I'll go play Auld Lang Syne on my fiddle to the sleeping neighborhood.  A secret gift.

xoxo, S.

On the 4th and 5th day

Life intervened.  My close-work light was fixed.  Thank you Martin.

I made gluten-free blueberry muffins and took Gilly to the gentle-dog park and tried to take a picture of her very fast darting hither and yon, but she is too fast for the camera!  After the other dogs left, we took an off-leash walk around the park and she managed well!!

I re-did the wreath:

Better, yes?

Went to two movies, Hyde Park on the Hudson, and the Master. This is a good time of year for movie-going.

And here's the progress on the peaceable lion:

Only seven more days of Christmas left. 

That's all the news for now.  I wish I could send you each a blueberry muffin, because they turned out better than I'd imagined possible.  Let me know if you'd like the recipe.  

On the third day...

The furnace was fixed!  Now it just needs a major cleaning. Sigh.

I added some sprigs to the wreath...little twigs found at the dog park etc.  I think tomorrow I'll have to rearrange things a bit and add some cloth...and the ivy. I love the star shape of the hubcap but it's too metallic and humblejumble now.

Here's Gilly on the other side of the window:

And here is more progress on the peaceable lion:

That's all for today.  Time for a sleep.