stuck

sometimes you get stuck while looking for cat toys to steal
sometimes no one notices you are stuck because they are cooking dinner
so you just go to sleep until someone comes along to help you get out



but FIRST they wake you up and take photos of you to humiliate you

Poor Mojo, doesn't he know crime doesn't pay?

Summer wear

Some ladies choose to wear bold red and gold colors during summer months

or even hot looking magenta....


while others prefer the cooler looks of blue



or white...



here in the south, we even wear white AFTER Labor Day!

squ-eel with joy

I made this little eel using a pattern I found here. I'd never made an undulating shape before so it was interesting to do. The pattern was really well written and easy to follow.

Mr. Eel will be used sometime in July for a toy drop!

Nativity

Dean went to Israel for work last week and while he was there, took a tour of the Holy Land.

He had a wonderful time and took over 1,000 photos! I can't upload them all here but we put several on FB so if you are interested, head on over.

We all missed him so much and were so happy when we picked him up from the airport.

From the smile on his face, I think he was happy to be home.


He didn't go crazy buying things over there but did bring home this lovely olive wood nativity.

It was hard putting it away until Christmas.....

Give and Take

There is a little organic store and deli close to where we live. I go there a few times a month to pick up special spices or flours.

A couple years ago I got into a conversation with the owner about soups and how I make soup all the time. She got excited and offered up free turkey and chicken stock.
They make so many sandwiches that they cook 80 pounds of both each week, and they usually have to throw out the stock because they can't store that much.

Yesterday I took them these loaves of pumpkin bread as a thank you

I didn't want Dean and the kids to feel shortchanged so I made them a bunch of these:

I don't eat cream cheese but I've been assured these are da bomb! They don't usually make it to a plate but they look pretty on one!

Here is how I make these Tiny Tarts:

beat 2 blocks of cream cheese
add 1 can sweetened condensed milk
add 1 tsp vanilla
add juice of half a lemon
beat REALLY well and make sure all lumps are out.
pour into mini graham cracker crusts, I use the pre-made ones. You'll need 2 packs.

mix a bunch of clean, fresh berries together into a bowl...I use whatever is in season.

make a glaze to hold them altogether by heating some strawberry jam in the microwave.  Then let it cool a bit.
Stir the berries with the glaze and then using a spoon, carefully top each tart with them.
Chill them to set the glaze and then serve.

Mosaic Monday

I've been trying to use up tiles from my stash and this is the perfect type of project to do it.
This birdbath is a gift for a neighbor.


I love the spiral. It is one of my favorite shapes to use and the marbles reflect through the water nicely.


Ms. Ladybug, I put one in all my mosaics...


I'm really excited about giving this to her because she works so hard keeping her yard pretty.

goings on...

During a doctor's visit last week, we came to the conclusion that Matt has outgrown the examination table...


Since we were there, I made a toy to drop. I love dropping toys at the hospital or doctor's office. Since kids are usually sick or just got shots, they could use a little "happy."

This time around, I made a Beluga Whale using a pattern from Planet June.


I also made a camera case up for Dean's trip to Israel. Our case is large and bulky but he needed something compact for his camel rides and such. He wanted something simple and sturdy.
Two strands of yarn held together made this case about as stiff as a board but it was still soft enough not to scratch anything.



ugly but effective...Dean insisted I make it in manly colors so he wouldn't have to "beat himself up."

crocheted jar cozies

I've run across several blogs where people crochet jar cozies so they can reuse the jars. I thought I'd try making some myself because I always feel guilty throwing out jars but can't keep them all. (Our area doesn't recycle since Hurricane Katrina.)
There are plenty of patterns on line but I just made this one up to get myself started.


They look pretty with a votive candle in them...sorry for the blurry photo, I forgot to change the camera settings.


The tall jars will hold bath salts I make. I have friends who look forward to them every year.
I'll make the cozies as new jars come along. I'm curious to see how many I wind up with by Christmas.

extra care...

Even though the kids were gone last week, I managed to stay busy taking care of other babies around the house....

Mojo got into some fire ants while we were in the yard. They got really nasty so he needed to visit the vet. Lucky boy got to wear this lovely fashion accessory so I could medicate it and keep him from licking his toes.

...sleeping off some benadryl I gave him for the itching, poor baby.

Eventually, he started feeling well enough to play...
Here, he either wore Ginger out or she is one seriously lazy dog!


Suki needed attention too. She was super lonely and WHINY with Kaela gone. Oh my gosh, it was like having an infant in the house. All the crying and needing to be held and pet and snuggled. It was awful and I felt so sad for her. I kept thinking. Seriously, what is she going to do when Kaela goes to college?

On the plus side, it proves she has truly become a family kitty and has bonded with us. Even Dean felt sorry for her and gave her extra loving. I knew he was concerned when he dumped her on my side of the bed and told her to go to sleep!


I was even busy with outside critters. I had to pull this toad out of a big bowl we have under our downspout.
I brought the toad house over and plopped it down in front of him and went back to work in the yard.
A couple hours later I went to move the house back but Mr. Toad had moved in so I just left it alone.

"Since we humans have the better brain, isn't it our responsibility to protect our fellow creatures from, oddly enough, ourselves?"

- Joy Adamson

Mosaic Monday

I have always loved turtles and used to bring them home regularly. My dad still has a few in the backyard that he feds each week. Considering my age, they must be around 40 + years old now.
We don't have any turtles in our current yard because I think Ginger would harass them. Instead, I move them out of the road to help them on their way.
I made my neighbor a stepping stone because he has a huge garden and could really use one...or more.
I needed to use up a bunch of swimming pool tiles someone gave me and plopped a little turtle down in the middle of it to break up all the blue.
I just kept it simple and whimsical since it will actually be used.


Have a wonderful week!

crochet octopus dog toys

Matt and Kaela were at Camp BigStuf this week so I had some time on my hands.

After working in the yard, I met a friend at Starbucks.
While we visited, we both worked on projects and I made a couple toys for Ginger and Mojo. I wanted something they could play tug of war or fetch with so made an octopus without stuffing.


They LOVE them. Mojo carries one around, sleeps with it and then dumps it in my lap when he wants to play.


Ginger carried the other one around for about 10 minutes


and then promptly set out to shred it! I had to intervene so it would survive a few more days.

I love it when my fur babies are happy!

finished...

Dean took a picture of the entire front yard from the street this morning....it looks so pretty. Hard work does pay off.



We finished the backyard too. We just needed to do some cleanup and replant things we brought from the front.

Sheri gave me some agapanthus a few years ago so we put them in a spot and babied them....then we bought a few more, divided them all and created this bed.



Bunbun was a gift from my other sister, Page...doesn't she look lovely here!



Chanticleer looks quite handsome next to our rosemary.
The tray on his head is for birdseed but the birds use him as a teeny birdbath instead. They sit in the gardenias and take turns.

Our gardenias were about 8 feet tall so after they finished blooming, we chopped them back by half.

I managed to get a nice bowl full of the last gardenia blooms...and the house smells heavenly.


Remember this post? Oh my gosh how gorgeous our yard was.
Sadly, we had to remove the lattice because of the willow tree we planted a couple years ago.
I really missed my wildflowers so I devoted this corner bed to them. I had saved a huge envelope of seeds and planted them yesterday.
I can't wait to see all the blooms with my angel in amongst them. It sounds silly but I know this will be my favorite part of the yard.

Other than a few touches, we are pretty much done. We have a few plants we haven't put back in the ground yet. We are holding them back and waiting to see if the plants we divided survive. If they do, I'll have more to share. Now maybe this week, I can get a little crafting done.

Hoping you all have a happy week....

"If a person cannot love a plant after he has pruned it, then he has either done a poor job or is devoid of emotion."
Liberty Hyde Bailey