Monday, November 2, 2009

Bacon Apple Pie

I've been rather busy with Ren Faire stuff, and of course, an idiot who keeps forgetting to bring out her camera at said faire. Oh well.

I did do something nice for all my friends at the CRF. With Jenny's help, we made two, count them, TWO Bacon Apple Pies.

They were delicious.

And rather pretty.


And my friends came up with another interesting idea.

Replace the bottom crust with more bacon.

Gauntlet thrown. . . Stay Tuned.

Monday, October 19, 2009

New Old Wheel!

Funny how things work out sometimes. I was talking with an old friend, mentioned my spinning and she offered me a wheel, for free, that was old. Her mom had bought it some 10 years ago and never used it. After getting it, I think I see why, and I will say, this wheel is worth every penny!


only one speed



And missing the treadles (Which are rather important!)


I'm going to see about replacing it all, and making a nice usable wheel out of it. Or, give it to the next person who'd like to do the same!

Monday, September 28, 2009

Brown Sheep FIber Swap!

Goody Goody! Goodies!

On Ravelryy, a secret swap was organized; exchange some Brown Sheep fiber plus goodies that didn't exceed $15, and pamper someone you hardly know. On my end, I had the fun of sharing my absolute favorite coffee with a fellow coffee junkie, plus gave her some of my lovingly blended batts and a new drop spindle. I just love enabling people!

I got my package today as well (I guess everyone had the good idea to ship Priority!)

In it I found:


Some beautifully hand-dyed roving, lovely freshwater pearl stitch markers, some awesome looking tea, some hand-dyed silk noil scraps, plus some coccoons to play with, silver thread, beads, butterfly beads, a teeny tiny crochet hook, recipe cards for dog cookies, dog-themed cookie cutters, and. . . a mystery item. It is a square-round piece of wood, with a piece cut out of it. I can't wait to find out what it is and what I'm supposed to do with it!

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

More cute doggy pictures


I swear, I still am knitting and spinning, but these two are so cute!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

The effects of gravity on a greyhound.

Greyhounds, one of the most graceful and beautiful dogs (in my completely unbiased opinion) are unfortunately plagued by one of the most prominent forces in the universe: Gravity.
Here we see specimen "M" who was only moments ago completely on the couch.



The most common defense a greyhound has against the force of gravity is wiggling. It is the hope of the subject that said wiggling will, through entropic forces, settle them in a state which uses less energy and is therefore, more comfortable.



Initial attempts may cause the head to become stuck between comfortable places.

But the stalwart greyhound will persevere until a more comfortable state is attained.



umm, Mimsy? Is that really comfortable?



mmmmmmyep!

Thus the subject has proven the theory that greyhounds are not only cute, but flexible. . . and a little silly.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Getting Closer. . .

It's fun watching the relationship between these two dogs progress. They went from very hands-off playing, to laying NEAR each other and now. . .

"my foot is cold"

"My hat smells funny"
"Your belly is comfy"

Also, it is AMAZING how much fur Mimsy sheds. I'm not sure if it's because she's still shedding the last of her winter coat or if it's because her fur is black and we notice it more on the beige carpet. Either way, I'm vaccuuming more!

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Mimsy!

It became clear pretty quickly that Mimsy fits our new pooch's personality. And as fun as it would be to have Callooh and Callay, well, ya gotta go with what feels right.

Day 1 went really well. We had introduced them at the kennel, and they liked each other really well.

She settled right down on the car ride, laying down after about only 5-10 minutes of standing. She very easily tolerated being picked up to get out of the car, and managed to navagate the two stairs up into the house from the garage. We walked her around, and she just kept walking in a circle around the circuit of our house! very cute. Then we took them outside in our backyard and watched some synchronised peeing!

Inside into her crate and she settled down without a fuss.

My friend came over later in the evening, and we again walked her in the backyard, letting Callay stay off-leash. More sniffing and peeing.

About the only odd thing that happened was at one point while I was outside and both dogs were inside (Callay wandering free, Mimsy in her crate) I hear barking. I go inside and I see Callay barking and play-bowing at the crate, and a bewildered look on the new dog's face. I tell Callay this is not appropriate and stare her down. Then she lays down right in front of the crate.

Mimsy settled right in when we took them upstairs (carrying her since she just was spayed) and she laid down in the crate without protest, and slept through the night. The only time she whined was when I got up this morning to go to the bathroom, at which point it was time to get everyone up.

The walk this morning was interesting. We took them on leash in the neighborhood. I'd forgotten just how rambunctious a high prey drive, young dog can be the first time they see a squirrel. hoo. She was trying for all her might to slip the lead, and a couple of times I grabbed her around the chest to hold her. We made that a rather short walk. We'll try again later today.

And now, some pictures!










Sunday, July 26, 2009

Bugs at home

I didn't know honeybees liked hydrangeas!





I also tried to get a shot of two cicada killers fighting, but wasn't quick enough. All I got was blurry spots.

Fun at the lake

I always enjoy watching Callay swim. Well, "Swim" really. More like she floats in her life vest and holds on to someone else who's swimming. This past trip we were making the most of the use of the lake and getting Callay some "hydro therapy" getting her to actually swim and use those muscles that have atrophied a bit with being sick.

The first couple of swims were off of the dock, with Jeff lifting her in by the handle. Then we beached the boat and went swimming off of a sandy beach, letting Callay go in at her own pace. With Jeff and Mom out in the water calling to her, and me holding the leash (but not MAKING her go) she went right out into the water and swam of her own accord!

After a bit she got tired and wanted to rest on one of us floating, so Dad tossed in a blue funoodle. She rested her paws on it to help her keep her head above water, and was walking on the bottom, pushing the noodle along!


I was helping steady her bum when this picture was snapped.

Then we got back in the boat. She likes going fast. All the wind in the face like running but without all the exertion!

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our 8th anniversary. We will celebrate by consuming massive amounts of sushi.

New addition!

Since Callay is pretty much all better, Jeff and I decided to head on out to Greyhound Friends of NC to pick out a sibling for Callay.

We met a few doggies, and came to the conclusion that Callay doesn't really like boys. Her reactions to them were either ignore totally or be rather annoyed by their presence. They were permitted to sniff her royal hindquarters, but if they sniffed at her breath she kept avoiding them.

So it was down to two girls, who currently go by "Sister" and "Tuff"

Callay liked both of them. Lots of face contact and tail wagging. Unfortunately, Sister seemed a bit skittish around us, and with as boisterous as we and our friends tend to be, I can't imagine she'd be that happy. While we probably could bring her out of her shy shell, it's not guaranteed and she probably wouldn't be terribly happy.

Tuff, on the other hand not only got Callay to actually RUN for a bit, they still did some great space-sharing, and some simultaneous trotting. I was having too much fun watching them to get too many pictures, but here they are (one is of Tuff from the website)




Callay was tired from all the fun


A fun car shot just for the heck of it.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Tour de Fleece Day 2

A bobbin and a half full, and most of the batts pre-drafted and ready to spin.



Callay isn't sure about all those other greyhounds in the house.